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DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 




Mr. Rabbit and Captain Crow. 







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] LiBR)^«Y of C0N6REsi| 
j Two Cooles Rocelvad ! 

I JUL 16 1907 
I /7 0 oD»rizht Entry 

^ASS ^(X XXCm No. 

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COPY □. 


Co?vs:c:rT, 1907, 

By THOMAS Y. CkOV/ELL & CO. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Dorothy and Kim 1 

Mr. Rabbit and Captain Crow 5 

The Peace Supper 15 

The Dance 29 

Mr. Rabbit has a Doubee Chide 37 

Mr. Rabbit goes Fishing 51 

Mr. Rabbit and the Big Meeon 67 

Who Ate the Big Meeon.? 79 

Mr. Rabbit Gathers His Ground-peas ... 89 

Mr. Rabbit Irons His Coeear 99 

Mr. Rabbit has the Tooth-ache .... 109 






ILLUSTRATIONS 


Mr. Rabbit and Captain Crow . . . Frontispiece ^ 

PAGE 

The Peace Supper 

“ Tum-e, tum-e, tum, tum, tum ! ” . . . .32 

Mr. Rabbit Has a Double Chill . . . . 42 / 

Mr. Rabbit Goes Fishing 56 

“ Roll IT Off ! Roll it Off ! ” 70^ 

“ That Much for One ” 80 

The Trouble With the Dinner-horn ... 94 

Mr. Rabbit Irons His Collar 100 

Doctor Wise-Owl Makes a Visit . . . . . 112 



DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 

DOROTHY AND KIM 

D orothy was a llttle southern girl, and 
Kim was only a kitten. Yet they were 
great friends, and many a talk would they have 
together. At least, Dorothy did most of the talk- 
ing, while Kim would look wise and purr; so I 
am sure he understood all about it. But some- 
times he would go sound asleep right in the mid- 
dle of the most exciting stories, when he would 
have to be waked up, or else the rest of the story 
was saved for another time. 

The best part of the day — so Dorothy thought 
— was right after supper, when she would have 
half an hour of play before bed-time. Then 
she liked best to curl up by Kim, who was a 
fluffy ball, in front of the big open wood Are, 
and tell him all that had happened during the 
day, or else about the wonderful stories she had 
heard from old Uncle Phil, who certainly knew 
many curious things about the birds and beasts. 
1 


2 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


But best of all, Dorothy liked the Rabbit 
Stories, and Kim must have liked them too. 
For here they are, set down just as Dorothy 
remembered and told them. And I know they 
are much safer from being lost, than if trusted 
only to Kim’s forgetful sleepy head! 


MR. RABBIT AND CAPTAIN CROW 






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MR. RABBIT AND CAPTAIN CROW 


O NE day Captain Crow, from way up on a 
limb of a pine tree, looked down and saw 
Mr. Rabbit sitting in the broom-sedge in front 
of his house on the sunny side of the hill. 

“Good morning, neighbor Rabbit,” said Cap- 
tain Crow; “you must be sick — you have been 
sitting there so long, and I did not see you at the 
moonlight party last night.” 

“No, Captain Crow,” said Mr. Rabbit, “I am 
not sick, but I am drefful bothered in my mind; 
I don’t think I will ever care to go ’bout and be 
pleasant and neighborly any more.” 

Captain Crow said he was sorry to hear Mr. 
Rabbit talk that a-way, and he wanted to know 
what was the matter. 

“Well,” Mr. Rabbit said, “you know. Captain 
Crow, there are such juicy pea-vines in the gar- 
den at the big white house over yonder, and I 
have been going there every evening for a week 
to make my supper of them, and neither the old 
black Man who works the garden, nor the big, 
5 


6 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


fat, idle Cat that’s ’most always asleep on the 
leaves in one corner, has ever seen me till last 
night, when I came near losing my life!” 

And Captain Crow said, “I feel so shocked 
at what you tell me, dear neighbor Rabbit, that 
I cannot sit steady on this high limb; so I will 
come down there where you are.” And he said 
if Mr. Rabbit had any worse troubles to tell him, 
he might fall from his high perch and break a 
wing or maybe a toe. 

Now, Kim, old Captain Crow wasn’t ’fraid 
one bit of falling off the limb, but he had seen 
some corn coming up in Mr. Rabbit’s corn-patch, 
and he told himself maybe he could get a nice 
lunch while Mr. Rabbit was telling his troubles. 
So he flew down right on a hill of sprouting 
corn, and he said: 

“Now go on, neighbor Rabbit, I feel safe 
here!” 

And Mr. Rabbit said, “Just as I ’menced to 
nibble the pea-vines, I heard the dry leaves rat- 
tle, and I stood on my hind legs and looked all 
’bout me, and what do you think my big, black, 
shiny eyes saw?” 

And Captain Crow said, “Oh, oh, I do b’lieve 
it was the cunning, sharp-clawed, yellow-eyed 


MR. RABBIT AND CAPT. CROW 7 


old Cat you saw, ’bout to do you some harm!” 

Then he tucked his head down quick and took 
a grain of corn, with long roots and tender 
sprouts, from ’tween his toes, swallowed it, and 
ruffled his feathers out big like he wanted to 
fight his neighbor’s enemies. 

He hopped to another hill of sprouting corn 
and said: 

“Tell me more, neighbor Rabbit!” 

And Mr. Rabbit said, “Yes, kind Captain 
Crow, it was that Cat; and ’stead of that Cat 
saying ‘Stay, Mr. Rabbit, and ’joy yourself,’ 
she sprang straight at me, with tail as big as the 
rounds of my new rattan chair in my sitting- 
room. I tell you. Captain Crow, I hopped the 
hop of my life!” 

“You don’t say so!” said Captain Crow, as 
he swallowed another grain of corn; “farther 
than this, I s’pose?” And he hopped to a hill 
where a green leaf was showing a little bit. 
“Was it ’bout this far?” 

“Oh,” said Mr. Rabbit, “as far as from here 
to that sweet-gum stump! I made straight for 
the break in the garden fence, but I missed get- 
ting through, for I didn’t have time to stretch 
out long — that is the only way I can get 


8 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


through, for I am some stouter since I have been 
living so high.” 

Well, Mr. Rabbit said Mrs. Cat chased him 
’round the garden twice ’fore he got up courage 
to squeeze through; and by the time he got 
through, she had climbed the fence, and started 
after him hard as ever she could, and he wouldn’t 
be s’prised if she hadn’t caught him, if Mr. Dog 
hadn’t seen them and started after them both. 
Mrs. Cat climbed a tree, and he ran on hard as 
ever he could, and just ’fore Mr. Dog caught 
him, he hid in a hollow log, and laughed and 
laughed to think how safe he was. He thought 
he would soon get tired barking and go home. 
But he didn’t get tired soon as he thought he 
would, and he said he was ’ginning to be ’fraid 
he would be too late at the moonlight party; but 
he said he didn’t care much if he was a little late, 
for he knew his spring suit would be the newest 
one there, and he wanted everybody to be there 
’head of him so they could see him when he came 
in, and tell everybody else how spick-and-spandy 
he was. 

Now, Kim, that sounds mixed up, but you 
know what I mean. 

Then JNIr. Rabbit said, “Captain Crow, what 


MR. RABBIT AND CAPT. CROW 9 


do you think happened? Why, a Man with an 
axe came, and told the Dog to stop barking and 
lie down, and he said, ‘Now when I cut the log in 
two, and the Rabbit runs out, you catch him.’ ” 

Well, Mr. Rabbit said when the man ’menced 
to cut, he forgot all ’bout the moonlight party 
and his new spring suit, and he stretched and 
stretched himself out long to see if he could get 
out at the other end of the log, which was the 
littlest. While the Man and the Dog were 
watching one end, he squeezed and squeezed, and 
just as the log fell in two pieces he managed 
to get out. And, Kim, he told Captain Crow 
he never was going to tell — no, not a single 
time — how far he jumped, or how fast he 
jumped, for nobody would b’lieve him! 

Captain Crow said it made him so hopping 
mad to hear of such doings, that he just couldn’t 
stand still! He kept hopping about, and every 
time he hopped he hopped to another hill of corn, 
and if Mr. Rabbit’s story had been much longer 
he wouldn’t have had any corn left to grow. 

Mr. Rabbit said he stayed in the woods ’most 
all night, and was so tired and sleepy when he 
got home he couldn’t eat a mouthful. And he 
never ’tended to go to that garden again, but 


10 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


would plant more corn and live on the green 
leaves. 

Then he said, “Do you see any of it breaking 
through the ground, Captain Crow?” 

Captain Crow walked about ’tending to look 
good, and said, “It’s a little dark out here and I 
don’t see any, but it must be coming up, for I 
saw neighbor Jay-bird very busy over here 
all yesterday while you were not at home, and 
when he flew away I thought he had a grain 
of corn in his bill; but I might have been mis- 
taken,” 

Then he told Mr. Rabbit he must go now, as 
he had promised to be at a Crow meeting twenty- 
flve miles away by ten o’clock, and it was eight 
right at that minute. 

But Mr. Rabbit said, “Stay a little longer, 
Captain Crow. I want to tell you that while I 
was sitting here by myself, I was thinking maybe 
it would be a good idea to have a supper one 
night, and ’vite the Cat and Dog to meet a few 
of our neighbors, so we can get better acquainted, 
and learn to like each other, and not live in fear 
of them all the time.” 

Captain Crow said he thought it was a real 
flne idea, and he would come early to-morrow af- 


MR. RABBIT AND CAPT. CROW 11 


ternoon to talk it over. Then he said, ‘‘Good- 
day, neighbor Rabbit!” 

Mr. Rabbit said, “Good-day, Captain Crow!” 

And Captain Crow flew up in the air and was 
out of sight behind the trees in a minute. Then 
Mr. Rabbit went in his house and shut the door. 

Well, Kim, we are both so sleepy we won’t 
talk any more to-night — but wasn’t that a funny 
story? And I’ve got lots more to tell you to- 
morrow night ’bout Mr. Rabbit and Captain 
Crow. 


THE PEACE SUPPER 


13 






THE PEACE SUPPER 


OU ’member, Kim, ’bout Mr. Rabbit being 



X so worried yesterday that he couldn’t eat? 
Well he was so hungry next morning that Mrs. 
Rabbit had to cook breakfast and have it on the 
table long ’fore the sun was up. Then they both 
sat down, and Mr. Rabbit eat and eat till he 
wasn’t hungry any more. 

Then he took his pipe out of his pocket, and 
went to the stove to get a coal of fire to light it; 
and while he was doing that he asked Mrs. 
Rabbit where she was yesterday while the Jay- 
bird was eating the sprouting corn. 

Mrs. Rabbit said she had the tooth-ache so 
bad she couldn’t think of the corn, so she went 
and talked across the fence to Mrs. Long-Ears 
all the evening ’bout the moonlight party. 

That made Mr. Rabbit so mad he couldn’t see 
real good, and he burned his finger; and that 
made him madder that ever, and he walked fast 
out of the house and slammed the door so hard 
that Mrs. Rabbit jumped. And Mrs. Rabbit 


15 


16 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


watched him a little while through the window, 
then she tied her apron ’round her waist, and 
’menced to wash the dishes. 

Well, Kim, after Mr. Rabbit had walked over 
his field an ’zamined it good, he knew in a minute 
that Captain Crow, and not Mr. Jay-bird, had 
’stroyed his corn. Then he got so mad that there 
was no way to tell how mad he was. He couldn’t 
stand still, but jumped all about, took his hat 
in one hand and scratched his head with the 
other. Then his pipe fell out of his mouth right 
in the broom-sedge and set it on fire, and he had 
to run all about till he found a little pine tree to 
break a limb off, so he could whip out the fire 
’fore it got to his yard fence. He had to work 
harder and faster than he ever did in his life, 
and when the fire was all out, he had to sit down 
on a sweet-gum stump and fan himself ^vith his 
hat; and for about three minutes, with his long 
ears laid flat on his neck, he did some hard think- 
ing. 

Then he stood up and put his hand to his 
mouth, just this way, and said, “ Whoo-p-e-e !” 

Mrs. Rabbit was drying the dishes, but when 
she heard Mr. Rabbit call, she dropped the dish- 
towel on the floor, and set the plate on the table 


THE PEACE SUPPER 


17 


so hard that it broke in two pieces. Then she 
ran to the door, put her head out, raised her 
hand to her ear, just this way, and listened good, 
for Mr. Rabbit was telling her to bring him the 
hoe, and the little bag of shelled corn, and come 
out there and help him re-plant the corn. 

Mrs. Rabbit asked him where the bag was, 
and Mr. Rabbit said, “Hanging behind the 
door.” 

When Mrs. Rabbit had found the bag of 
corn, she ran to the door again and asked where 
was the hoe. And Mr. Rabbit said, “Look un- 
der the bed, and be quick ’bout it, too.” 

And she must have been quick ’bout it, Kim, 
for she got the hoe and sack of corn, and tied 
her sun-bonnet on, and was in the field ’fore 
most folks could have got farther than the gate. 

Then Mr. Rabbit told Mrs. Rabbit to see what 
mischief Captain Crow was up to yesterday, 
while he was telling him ’bout his troubles. 

And Mrs. Rabbit said, “Who would have 
thought it of Captain Crow!” Then she said, 
“I smell fire.” 

And Mr. Rabbit told her all ’bout the fire that 
got started from his pipe ; and Mrs. Rabbit told 
him he ought to have called her, so she could have 


18 DOROTHY^S RABBIT STORIES 


brought a bucket of water to help put it out; 
and that she was Traid he would be real sick 
after such a ’citing time. And Mr. Rabbit 
thanked her, and said, ‘T hope not.” 

Then Mrs. Rabbit gave him the bag and he 
swung it ’cross his shoulder, just this way, then 
she handed him the hoe ; and he said he was much 
’bliged to her for saving him that long walk, and 
she could go back to the house now. And she 
said no, she would stay and cover the corn for 
him. 

So Mr. Rabbit opened the hill with his hoe, 
then reached his hand in the bag for corn; and 
while he was dropping one grain at a time till he 
had dropped five, they both sang, 

“One for the Blackbird, one for the Crow, 

One for the Cut- worm and two for to grow.” 

Then JNIrs. Rabbit covered it with her foot 
and patted it down three times. And when they 
had finished, Mr. Rabbit said, “Let’s set up a 
scare-crow like the one the old black Man has in 
his melon-patch, then there won’t anybody dare 
to bother the corn.” 

Mrs. Rabbit said, “It’s a real fine idea, for a 
scare-crow looks just like a little Man;” and 


THE PEACE SUPPER 


10 


she said she was s’prised they hadn’t thought of 
doing that long ’go. 

So while Mr. Rabbit was driving down a lit- 
tle pole, ’bout this high, she went to the house 
and came back with one of Mr. Rabbit’s old coats 
and his old straw hat ; and they dressed the pole 
in them and stood a gun by its side. 

Then Mr. Rabbit laughed, and said it looked 
just like old Mr. Cotton-tail that lived ’cross the 
branch; and Mrs. Rabbit said it did that ver-ee 
thing. Then they both laughed, to think how it 
would frighten Captain Crow; and Mrs. Rab- 
bit went in the house to finish washing the dishes, 
while Mr. Rabbit leaned on his front gate and 
smoked his pipe. 

Now, Kim, ’way up on a limb of a big oak 
tree where Mr. Rabbit could not see him, sat 
that bad Crow; and he saw them re-plant the 
corn, and he laughed and laughed; and when he 
could quit laughing he flew down to Mr. Rabbit 
and said, “Good-morning, neighbor Rabbit ; you 
are out early this morning.” 

And Mr. Rabbit said, “Yes, Captain Crow, I 
j had to plant twenty-eight hills of corn before the 
sun got hot; and I have hired old Mr. Cotton- 
tail from ’cross the branch to stand out there and 


20 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


shoot anyone that bothers that corn again. I 
am to give him three grains of corn off every 
ear that is made. He is a little near-sighted, so 
it will not be safe for even my friends to go near 
him.” 

Captain Crow bowed his head twice, just this 
way, and said, “That’s so — that’s so.” 

Then Mr. Rabbit said, “We will talk ’bout the 
peace supper;” and they talked and they talked; 
and at last they ’cided to have a supper at Mr. 
Rabbit’s home the next night at twenty-three 
minutes after nine o’clock, and ’vite the Cat and 
the Dog to meet some of Mr. Rabbit’s friends; 
so that maybe when they met and got better 
’quainted, they would learn to like one ’nother so 
well that they would all be friends ever after. 

Captain Crow said it was the ver-ee finest idea 
that ever was, and he was s’prised that it had not 
been thought of long and long ago ; and he told 
Mr. Rabbit to tell him which of his friends he 
wanted to ’vite, and he would hurry ’way and let 
them know. 

Mr. Rabbit said he would like to have Colonel 
Coon that lived so far up the spring-branch that 
he only came to see them once a year; and JNIajor 
Possum that lived such a quiet life in the hollow 


THE PEACE SUPPER 


21 


stump on the other side of the big ’simmon tree; 
and Mr. Rat that lived under the corn in the 
barn. He said he b’lieved the ones he had men- 
tioned, with himself and Mrs. Rabbit, and Mrs. 
Cat and Mr. Dog at the white house, ought to 
make ver-ee ’greeable company; ’specially if 
each brought a dish of their fav’rite food, so all 
could have plenty to eat ’thout Mrs. Rabbit hav- 
ing to tire herself cooking so much. 

Then Captain Crow flew here and there and 
yonder so fast that in seventeen minutes and 
’leven seconds he had been to everyone and told 
them ’bout the peace supper; and all said, p’lite 
as he could be, that they would be ver-ee pleased 
to come. 

Well, Kim, at ’zactly seven minutes to nine, 
if anybody had thought to look over to the Rab- 
bit’s house, that night, they’d have seen as flne a 
sight as is ever seen on the President’s hand- 
shaking day. The p’cession, with ’bout ten yards 
’tween, ’cause each was s’picious of the other, 
reached from Mr. Rabbit’s door-steps to the big 
gate ’way down at the foot of the lane. 

Mr. Dog, with a ham-bone in a basket, and 
Mrs. Cat, with a pitcher of cream, were the first 
to come; and Captain Crow introduced them to 


22 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


the Rabbits as their newest and very best friends. 
The Rabbits tried hard not to show scared, but 
their eyes looked ver-ee big and their ears stood 
up ver-ee straight. 

Then came Colonel Coon, with a bucket of 
crabs, and Major Possum, with a basket of 
’simmons, and Mr. Dog said to them, ‘T am so 
glad to meet you!” And Mr. Dog looked so glad 
out of his eyes that Colonel Coon and Major 
Possum ’most jumped off the floor. 

Then Mr. Rat, with a dish of cheese, came in, 
and Captain Crow said, “Let me introduce you 
to your enemy” — then he put his hand to his 
mouth and coughed a little, ’cause he had made 
a mistake, and ’menced again — “let me make you 
’quainted with your new friend, pretty Mistress 
Pussy.” 

Mrs. Cat looked hard at Mr. Rat and started to 
say she was glad to have him for supper ; but she 
’membered it was a peace meeting, so she said, 
“How de do!” And Mr. Rat squeaked some 
words, but he was so scared you couldn’t tell 
•what he said! 

Then after Mr. Rabbit had taken his guests’ 
hats and canes and gloves and veils and laid 
them on the bed, and put the things they had 



The Peace Supper. 







THE PEACE SUPPER 


23 


brought to eat on the table, Mrs. Rabbit stood 
by the table with one hand on the back of her 
chair, and pointing with the other, she said to 
each one, “You sit there, and there, and there.” 
And they sat down and ’menced to eat and talk, 
and they were so-o p’lite to one ’nother! 
Though, once, when Major Possum helped him- 
self from a dish near Mr. Dog, Mr. Dog 
growled and showed his teeth; but he said real 
quick, “Beg pardon!” And once Colonel Coon 
started to take a drink from the pitcher of cream, 
and Mrs. Cat wrinkled her face and looked cross ; 
but she thought quick, too, and said, “’Sense me. 
Pray, help yourself!” 

Well, Kim, things moved ’long most ’joy able. 
They all talked real int’resting, but Captain 
Crow beat them all ; he was the one that kept the 
ball rolling. I don’t mean the ball like you play 
with, Kim, but the talk at the table. 

Well, as anybody else might have ’spected, it 
wasn’t long ’fore something ver-ee funny and 
ver-ee ’citing happened. 

When Colonel Coon took the top off the 
bucket to help himself to crabs, two got away 
from him. One crawled too near the edge of the 
table and fell to the floor, and the other went up 


24 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


the side of the pitcher and dropped into the 
cream; and when Mrs. Cat reached in to get it 
out, the crab caught her paw and held on. Poor 
Puss drew her paw out so quick that it sent the 
crab ’cross the table, struck Captain Crow in the 
face, and knocked his specs off, ’sides throwing 
cream in Major Possum’s eyes. And at the 
same time, the crab on the floor reached up and 
caught her tail and pinched it ver-ee hard. 

Then things happened so fast that you could 
hardly know what did happen! When the crab 
pinched her tail Mrs. Cat thought Colonel Coon 
did it. So she slapped him on the side of the 
head three times, jumped out of her chair and on 
the top of the table, ’fore you could count six. In 
just one second more everyone at the table was 
as scared as if they hadn’t been at a peace meet- 
ing — ’cause no one knew what was the matter or 
what would happen next. 

Nothing worse would have happened if Cap- 
tain Crow had done what he ought to have done, 
and that was to take up his glass quick and say, 
“Let’s drink to the peace and good- friendship of 
all present!” 

But ’stead of that, ’cause Captain Crow saw 
it was a splendid time to have the fun of his life. 


THE PEACE SUPPER 


25 


in the ver-ee second that Mrs. Cat slapped Col- 
onel Coon, and Colonel Coon fell over towards 
Mr. Dog, Captain Crow said one word real low, 
and that word was 

Then Mr. Dog jumped clear ’cross the table 
at Major Possum, and everybody ’gan to dis’pear 
like snow melts ’fore the sunshine. 

Mr. Rabbit was the first to leap through the 
window; then Major Possum; then Mrs. Cat. 
Mr. Rat ran up the wall ; Captain Crow flew out 
of the door, and Mrs. Rabbit hid under the bed. 
When Mr. Dog got outside, nothing was in 
sight ’cept Colonel Coon loping down the lane. 

Mr. Dog started after him hard as he could 
run, but Colonel Coon skinned up a tree, and 
Mr. Dog went home and sat out in the yard and 
barked all night, and folks didn’t know what he 
was barking ’bout. 

And that was the end of the peace supper. 



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THE DANCE 


27 ! 


THE DANCE 


T he next day while Mr. Rabbit was in his 
new ground piling brush, Captain Crow 
came to him and said, “Good morning, neigh- 
bor Rabbit!” 

Mr. Rabbit laid a piece of brush on the top of 
the pile and pressed it down so it would stay, 
then turned ’round and said, “Good-morning, 
Captain Crow!” 

Then Captain Crow said, “We must have an- 
other peace meeting; it will never do to stop at 
just one.” 

But Mr. Rabbit said, “No use! It would be 
sure to end like the other — or maybe worse, some- 
body might get eaten up alive! — ’specially if you 
said that word again!” 

And Mr. Rabbit asked Captain Crow if he 
didn’t know that it was a drefful word to use at 
a peace meeting, and if he didn’t know that no 
Dog could sit still after hearing it, and what 
made him use it? 

Captain Crow said, in a ’citing time like that, 
29 


80 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


it was a ver-ee hard matter to think of the right 
word at the right time, but he b’heved he had 
made a big, yes, a ver~ee big mistake when he 
said it, and he never ’tended to say that word at 
a peace meeting again. And he told Mr. Rab- 
bit that the crabs were the cause of all the trou- 
ble; if it hadn’t been for them he wouldn’t have 
thought of saying “sic-c-k!” And he said he 
would ask Colonel Coon to let the crabs stay in 
the brook the next time, and swim about till he 
went back home. 

Then they talked and they talked, and after 
a while Mr. Rabbit said be b’lieved he didn’t care 
to have another supper, that they had to use so 
much flour for last night’s supper, and the flour 
was so low in the barrel this morning, Mrs. Rab- 
bit had to stand on a box and reach ’way down, 
and there was great danger of her falling in ; and 
he was ’fraid, too, he would have to buy another 
barrel ’fore the year was out, and it was only 
July now. But he was willing to have his friends 
come to a dance, a big dance out in his front 
yard ; the ground was as hard and smooth as the 
floor ; and, ’sides, they would have a better chance 
to get away if anything unpleasant should hap- 
pen. 


THE DANCE 


31 


So Captain Crow put his specs in his pocket, 
took his hat in his hand, and flew away over the 
tree-tops and out of sight to invite all their 
friends to come to the big dance. And Mr. 
Rabbit took the pitcher and ran to the spring for 
fresh water, and Mrs. Rabbit hurried hard as 
she could and baked a cake. Then they put the 
cake and the pitcher of water and a glass on a 
table under the grape-arbor, for ’freshments for 
the dancers when they got hot and tired. 

Then Mr. Rabbit told Mrs. Rabbit that each 
one of the guests was to come waving a peace 
flag, but as the flags would have to be laid down 
while they were dancing, he b’lieved it would be 
a ver-ee good idea to have a long pole with a 
peace flag on the top standing in the middle of 
the yard, for he ’membered hearing Captain 
Crow say one time, that nothing unpleasant must 
ever happen so long as the peace flag waved. 

And Mrs. Rabbit said she b’lieved it would 
be a flne idea, and she told Mr. Rabbit to get the 
pole while she run in the house for one of her 
ver-ee best and whitest pocket handkerchiefs to 
tie on the top for the flag. And they both did. 

That night when the moon had climbed to the 
top of the tallest pine tree, such a sight was seen 


32 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


in the Rabbits’ front yard as was never seen be- 
fore. Such polite, well-dressed Dogs and Cats 
and Coons and Possums and Squirrels, all bow- 
ing and smiling and shaking hands with each 
other any saying, “How do you dol” and “how 
is your health I” and “it’s a ver-ee great pleasure 
to meet you !” 

Captain Crow, with his banjo, sitting ’way up 
on the gate post, was the best dressed and polit- 
est of them all. His collar was so high and so 
stiff, he couldn’t see the ground, so he had to 
look straight up at the stars all the time. But 
that didn’t bother him, he was proud of that col- 
lar ! It didn’t keep him from talking either, for 
after he had taken his watch out of his pocket 
and held it close to his eyes — just this way — he 
called out real loud; 

“Stop your talking, all you ladies and gentle- 
men, the music is ’bout to commence! S’lect 
your partners and open the ball!” 

Then they all quit talking, and in a minute had 
s’lected partners and got their feet ’zactly right 
for dancing; and Mr. Rabbit called up to Cap- 
tain Crow, 

“All ready!” 

Then Captain Crow stood up straighter than 



‘‘ Tum-e, tum-e, turn, turn, turn! ” 






THE DANCE 33 

ever and ’menced to play “turn, turn, tumee, turn, 
tum, tumr 

Then the dancing ’menced. It would be a 
hard matter to find better dancers in a ball-room 
than were seen in the Rabbits’ yard that night, 
for Captain Crow knew ’zactly what to tell them 
to do, and the music was every bit as good as a 
band! 

So they danced and they danced, and Captain 
Crow talked and played — just this way — “S’lute 
your partners — turn, turn, turn, — all promenade! 
tum-ee, turriy turn — this is the way to live! — turn, 
turn, turn — prettiest sight you ever did see! — 
tum-ee-tum-ee, turn, turn, tumr 

Well, Kim, for ’bout three hours ever5rthing 
went on so-o fine. Everybody kept off every- 
body else’s toes. They went to the grape-arbor 
for ’freshments when they wanted any. Then 
I am ver-ee sorry to tell you something hap- 
pened. It happened this way : The crow played 
too fast — he tummed tummee turn turn faster 
and faster, till he got so fast the dancers didn’t 
have time to keep out of each other’s way, and 
somehow everybody got in the middle all at once 
— there didn’t seem to be any outside at all. 

Mr. Dog stepped on Mrs. Cat’s toes — and 


S4 DOROTHY’S RABRIT STORIES 


then — ^well then, Kim, the best way to know what 
happened was to have been there; for before you 
could look this way and that way Mrs. Cat had 
reached out and slapped Mr. Dog on his long 
ears three times, and Mr. Dog forgot, too, and 
said ^"Woupp! Wo-u-u-pp!” and turned loose 
Mrs. Coon, he was dancing with, and jumped at 
Mrs. Cat. But Mrs. Cat jumped over them all, 
run up the peace pole, and looked down at them 
with her back all hunched and her tail sticking 
straight up. 

When Mr. Dog went for Mrs. Cat, all the 
other dancers jumped this way and that way, 
just like what happens when you take the lid off 
the pan, when you are popping corn! And pop 
corn can’t pop out of the pan one bit faster than 
they popped out of the Rabbits’ yard that night! 

But Captain Crow, way up on the gate post, 
didn’t know a single thing had happened; for 
when the moon was on the other side of the trees 
he was still talking, “This is the way to live! 
Tummee, turn, turn! Prettiest sight you ever did 
see! Tummee, tummee, tummee, turn, turn, 
tumr just that ver-ee way. 

And then — why, Kim ! I do b’lieve you went 
to sleep in the most ’citing part! 


MR. RABBIT HAS A DOUBLE CHILL 


MR. RABBIT HAS A DOUBLE CHILL 



FTER the dance broke up in such a hurry, 


XjL Kim, Captain Crow played and played till 
he was so tired he could not play any more with- 
out a glass of ’freshments. So he hung his 
banjo on the paling and flew over to the arbor — 
and, Kim, when he got there such a sight as he 
did see! The table was turned over, the pitcher 
and glass were on the ground and broken into 
’leven-teen pieces; the cake was on the ground, 
too, and the plate on top of the cake. Captain 
Crow looked around, blinking his black eyes in 
ver-ee great ’stonishment. He was so s’prised 
that he did not notice how quiet everything was ; 
but just the minute he did notice, he knew some- 
thing had happened — surely had happened, 
but what he did not know. He was too sleepy 
to Ves-ti-gate it, so he thought he would hurry 
home, go to bed, get up early the next morning, 
and come back and get Mr. Rabbit to tell him all 
about it. 

But ’stead of that, Captain Crow slept ver-ee 


37 


38 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


late the next morning. The sun had been up 
’most one hour and seventy-three minutess when 
he waked. So he hurried to the spring branch, 
and dipped his head in the water three times; 
then he flew away in the ’rection of Mr. Rabbit’s 
house. When he got there the door was closed, 
and there wasn’t any smoke coming out of the 
chimney. So Captain Crow did not know just 
what had happened to his friends. They might 
be asleep ; or — now, Kim, let me whisper this — he 
thought they — ^might — have — got — eaten — up — 
alive last night! So he flew up in a tree by the 
window to wait and see. Well, Kim, he waited 
and he waited, and after a while he heard Mr. 
Rabbit ask Mrs. Rabbit where she was, and if 
she was not going to make the Are to-day. He. 
told her he b’lieved he had a double chill, his teeth 
were chattering so bad he could not keep his 
whiskers still. And Mrs. Rabbit said she was 
under the clothes basket. It had turned over her 
when she went to jump in it last night, and she 
was most smothered, and she had a ver-ee great 
tooth-ache besides. She said she could not get 
out ’thout help, and she asked Mr. Rabbit where 
he was, and she told him to come ^nd turn the 
basket up. 


MR. RABBIT HAS A CHILL 39 


Mr. Rabbit told her he was down at the bot- 
tom of the empty potato barrel, and he had the 
shakes so bad he could not hop out, but if Mrs. 
Rabbit would try real hard he b’lieved she could 
get from under the basket. Mrs. Rabbit said 
she could not, she just could not, and there was 
no use trying. 

Then Mr. Rabbit got mad, and he talked and 
he talked, and he said he did not b’lieve she had 
tried to get out, and he did not b’lieve she had 
the tooth-ache either, — it was always just that 
way! He never could have the pleasure of be- 
ing drefful sick ’thout her per-tend-ing she had 
the tooth-ache! 

Captain Crow chuckled at this and listened 
harder than ever. Mrs. Rabbit sniffed and said 
she b’lieved Mr. Rabbit was too scared to come 
out of his hiding place, — that was just all there 
was ’bout it! Mr. Rabbit said he was not scared, 
— she was the one — and he would have had the 
fire made two hours ago, but he had the shakes so 
bad he could not hold a match ; and if she would 
come and put the little ladder down the barrel 
so he could climb out, then make him a cup of hot 
tea, he would promise to build the fire every 
morning for twenty-seven and a half months. 


40 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


But Mrs. Rabbit said she was going to stay right 
where she was, for she knew Mr. Rabbit was 
’fraid there was danger ’bout, and wanted her 
to come out first. 

Then there was a long, long silence, and Cap- 
tain Crow couldn’t hear a sound in the house 
’cept Mr. Rabbit’s teeth chattering, just this way. 
But he was thinking hard all that time, and after 
a while he told Mrs. Rabbit if she would come 
out he would give her a yellow satin dress and a 
pair of the highest heeled slippers he could find. 
That tickled jMrs. Rabbit so much that the ver-ee 
next second Captain Crow saw the clothes bas- 
ket rise up a little, and one of IMrs. Rabbit’s 
hands come in sight, then the other, then her 
nose, then her head and neck, then she was all 
out from under the basket. And when the bas- 
ket slipped back to the fioor it made a little noise, 
and that second she saw JNIr. Rabbit’s whiskers 
go out of sight inside the barrel, and she knew he 
WAS scared, and she turned her head to one 
side and laughed a little, just this way. But 
she made the fire in the stove, then she pulled the 
little ladder from under the bed and stood on a 
chair and put it inside the barrel, and ’cause it 
was not long enough to reach the bottom she 


MR. RABBIT HAS A CHILL 41 


called to Mr. Rabbit to look out, for she would 
have to let it drop. But he did not look out quick 
enough, and it mashed his foot just a little. 

Then, Kim, of all the hopping about that ever 
a rabbit hopped, Mr. Rabbit hopped it inside 
that barrel, and the last hop hopped him out 
right in the middle of the floor. By that time 
Mrs. Rabbit had got her little bucket and was 
’most to the spring for fresh water to make the 
tea. And would you b’lieve it, Kim? All that 
time Captain Crow was sitting out there in the 
sweet-gum tree, laughing and laughing fit to 
kill. It was such great fun that he didn’t care if 
it lasted aU day. 

When Mrs. Rabbit got back the fire was out, 
and Mr. Rabbit was sitting on the side of the bed 
shaking just this way, and he wouldn’t look at 
Mrs. Rabbit all the while she was cooking break- 
fast. 

Well, ’bout that time Captain Crow thought 
he would go in and talk a while. So he flew out 
of the tree, and round the side of the house so 
they could not see him, then down to the front 
gate. Then he came up the walk with his hat 
on one side of his head, then up the steps and 
into the house, and he said: 


42 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


“Good morning, Mrs. Rabbit, you are looking 
spry this morning,” then, “Good morning, 
neighbor Rabbit, you are looking drefFul shaken 
up.” 

And Mr. Rabbit told him all ’bout the trouble 
last night, and said he had a double chill, and 
would Captain Crow please go as fast as ever he 
could to old Doctor Wise-Owl, and tell him to 
come right away ’fore the shakes made his ears 
get loose. 

Captain Crow said he would go with pleasure, 
but ’fore he went he would like to warm him up 
and make him more comfortable. So he told 
Mr, Rabbit to get in bed and cover up good all 
but his feet, — he must leave them hanging out- 
side, — and that he knew just what to do for 
double chills, he would ’tend to them so Doctor 
Wise-Owl would have nothing to look after ’cept 
the shakes. Then he said he would make a mus- 
tard plaster to put on the back of Mr. Rabbit’s 
neck. And he told Mrs. Rabbit to make a cup 
of red pepper tea; to make it strong and keep 
making it stronger till it would make you sneeze 
just to smell it. Captain Crow said the pepper 
tea was for one chiU, and the mustard plaster for 
the other chill. 




fT^ ; jljb 

« • 1 




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Mr. Rabbit has a double chill. 






D 






MR. RABBIT HAS A CHILL 43 


So he made the plaster and put it on the back 
of Mr. Rabbit’s neck, and told him to let it stay 
three hours by the watch. Mrs. Rabbit brought 
him the cup of tea and a little tub of hot water 
for Mr. Rabbit to put his feet in. Captain 
Crow brought the kettle of hot water and put it 
by the side of the tub, and he told Mrs. Rabbit 
to sit in her rocking chair by Mr. Rabbit and 
pour hot water in the tub till Mr. Rabbit would 
say real sharp, ‘‘Hot enough! Hot enough!” 
And she must fan with one hand and hold the 
watch in the other. He told Mr. Rabbit to keep 
drinking the tea till he fell asleep. Then he 
hurried away after the Doctor. 

Well, Kim, Mrs. Rabbit fanned and poured 
in the water when it was needed, and one time it 
came so near going on Mr. Rabbit’s foot that she 
was so scared her tooth most stopped aching. 
Mr. Rabbit drank the tea and sneezed, and in a 
ver-ee little while he was sound asleep, so sound 
asleep that he did not feel the mustard plaster 
burning the back of his neck. But when he did 
feel it, Kim, what do you s’pose happened? 

Mrs. Rabbit had just peeped over to look 
into his face to see if he was really asleep when 
she was s’prised to hear him call out, “Fire! 


44 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


Fire! I am burning up! Pour some cold water 
over me quick!” Then ’fore Mrs. Rabbit could 
move or even think, he bounded out of bed like 
a rubber ball, the cup fell bottom upwards right 
on the top of Mrs. Rabbit’s head, and the tea 
run in her ears and eyes and down the side of 
her face. She fell back, the rocking chair went 
over, and she turned a summersault and landed 
in the middle of the floor. And all that time 
Mr. Rabbit was jumping up and down just like 
a ball with a string tied to it, calling, “Fire! 
Fire!” and, “Pour some cold water over me!” 

The pepper was burning Mrs. Rabbit’s eyes, 
but she managed to open one just a little. She 
got a dipper of water and started after Mr. Rab- 
bit, but he was jumping so fast and so high she 
could not keep up with him Mr. Rabbit began 
to think that she never would catch up with him; 
so he did just what he ought to have done at first, 
only he did not think of it, — he jumped into the 
bucket of cold water, and sat there with only his 
nose out, so the water could cool the back of his 
neck. 

Mrs. Rabbit heard the splash, but she did not 
know what had happened ’cause her eyes were 
most closed, and when she turned round she 


MR. RABBIT HAS A CHILL 45 


tripped over the rocking chair. Just then the 
door opened and Doctor Wise-Owl came in. 
The dipper of water flew out of her hand, struck 
him in the face and knocked off his specs. 

Captain Crow, coming in just behind the Doc- 
tor, nearly died laughing, but it was all inside 
him and he never so much as winked an eye. 
There was Mr. Rabbit in the water bucket cool- 
ing the back of his neck; Mrs. Rabbit on the 
floor, most fainted with a sprained foot, and the 
tooth-ache, and pepper in her eyes; and Doctor 
Wise- Owl hopping around inside the door with 
his specs knocked off. 

The next minute more things happened. 
Doctor Wise-Owl put Mrs. Rabbit on the bed; 
then he needed some water to pour in her face, 
so he picked up the dipper and hurried to the 
bucket. ’Cause it was daylight and his specs 
were off he could not see Mr. Rabbit was in the 
bucket, and so the dipper came down hard on 
the top of his nose and made him see seven 
stars. Then, Kim, from the way Mr. Rabbit 
jumped out of the bucket, you would have 
thought he was a Jack-in-the-box; and, too, wet 
as he was he jumped right ’gainst Doctor Wise- 
Owl and knocked him over ^-nd made his head 


46 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


bump hard on the floor. Then Doctor Wise-Owl 
got mad and said he b’lieved it had all been done 
a-purpose, and they might have all the shakes 
they wanted — he would not stay a minute longer 
in that house. So he picked up his specs, and 
went out of the door, and slammed it so hard it 
made Mrs. Rabbit jump. But Mr. Rabbit said 
he didn’t care for he was well now, and it would 
be a long, long time and the grass would be 
greener than it was now ’fore he would try to 
’joy a little spell of sickness again. 

Then Mr. Rabbit put his hat on his head and 
lit his pipe and told Captain Crow if he would 
’scuse him he guessed he’d go fishing. He 
reached over the mantel-piece, took down his fish- 
ing-pole and fine, got down on his knees and 
pulled the hoe from under the bed, then he 
’menced to hunt for something, on the mantel- 
piece, and in the machine drawer, and in Mrs. 
Rabbit’s work-basket, — and how he made the 
thimble and scissors and spools rattle I 

Now, Kim, you would never guess what it 
w^as Mr. Rabbit was hunting, so I will tell you. 
It was the bait can. Mrs. Rabbit knew where 
it was, but ’cause Mr. Rabbit’s ears were laid 
flat on the top of his head, she knew things 


MR. RABBIT HAS A CHILL 47 


would be more pleasant ’thout any talk. So she 
let him hunt. 

Well, Mr. Rabbit found it at last, right in the 
window where he had put it, and he went out of 
the house. 

When Mrs. Rabbit heard the gate close, she 
got out of bed, put her paper dust-cap on her 
head, and tidied up the room; then she put on her 
apron and baked a pan of the cookies that Mr. 
Rabbit liked so well, for she said he would come 
back awfully hungry; he always did when he 
went fishing, and he always went fishing when 
things didn’t suit him at home. 

Then Mrs. Rabbit went out and talked to Mrs. 
Long-Ears ’cross the back-fence most all the 
afternoon, and Mr. Rabbit — why, Kim! Kim! 
you dear, naughty kitty, I b’lieve you are fast 
asleep ! Well, I hear Molly coming up the stairs, 
so I’ll finish the story to-morrow night. 


MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 


49 


MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 


W ELL, Kim, by the time Mr. Rabbit got 
outside the gate, his long ears were stand- 
ing up just as straight as could be, and he was 
smiling and looking as pleased as if he had never 
been scared in his life. Then he went to his 
ground-pea patch, and stood right in the middle 
of it, and kept looking on the ground here and 
there and yonder ’thout ever raising his eyes a 
single time. He was watching for something, 
Kim, he surely was, and he stood there a long 
time. He got so tired he would stand on one 
foot and rest the other foot; then he would stand 
on the other foot and rest the one foot; then 
after a while what do you s’pose happened? 
Why, he saw a little bit of the ground right un- 
der him rise up. Then he said; 

“How do you do down there, Mr. Mole?” 
And Mr. Mole said, “Just tolerable, thanky. 
How do you do up there, Mr. Rabbit?” 

And Mr. Rabbit said, “I am on the mend, 
thanky.” 


51 


52 DOROTHY^S RABBIT STORIES 


Then Mr. Rabbit said, “You are hurrying to 
get to a hill of my ground-peas.” 

But Mr. Mole said, oh, no! he really was not; 
he didn’t care very much for ground-peas; he 
was just taking a morning walk. 

Then Mr. Rabbit asked him if there was any 
fish-bait down there, and Mr. Mole said, “Plenty 
of it.” 

So Mr. Rabbit told Mr. Mole if he would bait 
his hook for him, he would give in trade a thim- 
ble full of ground-peas when he dug them. 
And Mr. Mole said he would do that ver-ee 
thing, and he did. 

So as soon as Mr. Mole had cracked up the 
ground so that his head showed, Mr. Rabbit laid 
his fishing pole down, and went and sat on a pine 
stump and took his pipe out of his pocket and 
put it in his mouth. Then he took a match out 
of his other pocket, struck it on the side of the 
stump, lighted his pipe and ’menced to smoke. 
And all that time Mr. Mole was feeling round 
on the ground for the fish-hook with one hand, 
while in the other hand he had a long angler 
worm. But he couldn’t find the hook till he 
stepped on it, and it hurt him so much he laid the 
fish-bait down quick and took both hands and got 


MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 53 


the hook out of his foot, and by that time the 
angler worm had wriggled away. 

Mr. Mole said to himself that it wouldn’t mat- 
ter much even if the hook wasn’t baited, for Mr. 
Rabbit wouldn’t look at it ’cause he said if he 
did it would spoil his luck. So Mr. Mole went 
over to the stump and stood the pole ’gainst it 
’thout saying a word, and went back to his morn- 
ing job of cracking up the ground. 

Then Mr. Rabbit took his pipe out of his 
mouth, knocked it on the side of the stump to 
spill the ashes out, put it in his pocket, reached 
for the pole ’thout looking, and walked off in 
the ’rection of the spring branch. He had a 
long way to go, so he walked slow, and when he 
met any of his friends on the way or passed 
their houses, he would stop and ask how did they 
do, and talk some ’bout the weather and the 
crops; then he would walk on again. When he 
came in sight of Major Possum’s house, he 
thought he would call and get a match, but when 
he got to the gate he saw a piece of paper with 
something written on it pasted to the gate-post. 
It said that Major Possum had gone down to 
the big ’simmon tree to pick up a bucket of ’sim- 
mons, and if anybody came while he was away 


54 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


they could wait; he’d be having such a fine time 
they could sit on the door-step till he got back, if 
they wanted to, 

Mr. Rabbit said he b’lieved he wouldn’t wait, 
but would go on to Colonel Coon’s house ; and he 
did, and when he got there he found a paper on 
the gate-post that said Colonel Coon had gone 
fishing, and if anybody came to borrow anything 
while he was away they needn’t wait; he’d be 
having such a fine time he didn’t know when he 
would get back. 

Mr. Rabbit said he would go on and stop at 
Mr. Fox’s house; and when he got there Mr. 
Fox was just coming in his gate holding a big 
red rooster by the legs. 

Mr. Rabbit said to himself: “That is old Red- 
combs that lives at the big white house where 
Mrs. Cat and Mr. Dog live.” He knew him, yes, 
he knew him just as well! for didn’t he poke his 
long neck out, and say, “Tut, tut,” just this way, 
the day he found him sitting in the long grass 
when Mr. Dog chased him? Yes, he ought to 
’member him! 

Well, Kim, when Mr. Rabbit got up close, Mr. 
Fox looked hot and tired like he had been run- 
ning ver-ee fast; so he said: 


MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 55 


“Good-day, Mr. Fox! You look like — er — 
Mr. Dog had been chasing you.” 

“Oh, no, friend Rabbit!” said Mr. Fox;” this 
old rooster of mine is hard to keep at home; he 
was outside the yard this morning and I had to 
run him down to catch him.” 

Then Redcombs said, “Tut, tut.” 

“What! you ’spute my word?” said Mr. Fox. 
“Weren’t you raised right here in my back 
yard?” 

But Redcombs said, “Tut, tut, tut!” just that 
way. 

“You ’spute that, too, do you?” snarled Mr. 
Fox. 

The Rooster flapped his wings and stretched 
his neck and said, “Shu-shu-shu-arr-R-R-RR!” 
just that ver-ee way, too. 

Then Mr. Fox got mad and put him in a coop 
with a big stick on top so he just couldn’t get out. 

Then Mr. Rabbit told Mr. Fox he would 
thanky him for a match to light his pipe. Mr. 
Fox said he was ver-ee sorry, but there was a 
hole in the top of his house over the mantel-piece 
and when it rained last night it leaked right on 
his match-box and ruined all his matches. Mr. 
Rabbit said a coal of fire would do just as well, 


56 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


and Mr. Fox said he was sorry, but he had not 
started the fire to-day. Then he saw Mr. Rabbit 
was looking at the smoke that was coming out 
of the chimney, and he said: 

“Oh, that smoke is coming from yesterday’s 
fire; it’s just been slow ’bout coming out of the 
chimney.” Mr. Rabbit said it must be ver-ee 
curious smoke, and Mr. Fox said it was that 
ver-ee thing. Mr. Rabbit said it did not rain at 
his house last night, and Mr. Fox said the little 
cloud just come as far as his house, then turned 
and went over the other way. 

Then Mr. Rabbit said, “Good-day,” and Mr. 
Fox said “Good-day.” Mr. Fox went into his 
house and shut the door and Mr. Rabbit started 
on. When he passed the coop, the Rooster 
winked one eye at him, and he winked one eye 
back at the Rooster and said he would do it. 
So he went on, and when he got to the spring 
branch he found Colonel Coon sitting on a log, 
with his long tail hanging in the water, fishing 
f or crabs. 

“Good-day, Colonel Coon! What luck?” he 
said. 

And Colonel Coon said, “Good-day, neighbor 
Rabbit! Great luck! ‘Bout twenty a minute.” 



Mr. Rabbit goes fishing 









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MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 57 


Mr. Rabbit said, good gracious! He b’lieved 
he would try his luck. So he walked out to the 
end of the log and sat down with his feet hang- 
ing down nearly touching the water, threw his 
line in ’thout ever looking at the hook and began 
to fish. 

He sat there a long time watching to see the 
cork go under, but it just stayed still on the top 
of the water; and after some more time a ver-ee 
little fish came up to the top of the water and 
looked at Mr. Rabbit, and Mr. Rabbit tried to 
poke it under the water again so it would go and 
swallow the hook and he could catch it. But 
the little fish knew better than to touch that sharp 
hook, so it darted around under the water and 
told all the little fish it met to come and look at 
Mr. Rabbit sitting up there on the log trying to 
catch them ’thout having anything on his hook! 

Then they all came to the top of the water, 
and looked and looked at Mr. Rabbit and 
laughed at him and played ’bout the cork and 
smelled it. JVIr. Rabbit tried to poke them un- 
der the water but they wouldn’t stay poked ; they 
all came back and looked and looked at him some 
more, and laughed at him and nibbled the cork 
some more, too. And one little fish run away 


58 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


down, down to where the big Perch lived, and 
told him to come and look at the Rabbit, and he 
did. And, Kim, it was so-o big ! — big as my two 
hands put together and two more hands ’side of 
them. Well, the big fish most stood up to look 
at Mr. Rabbit; then some of the little fish tried 
to stand up too. And they all laughed and 
laughed, and the big one jumped this high out of 
the water and fell back again. 

Then Mr. Rabbit got mad and splashed the 
water with the fishing-pole, till Colonel Coon 
told him to stop making so much noise, he would 
scare all the crabs away. But Mr. Rabbit said 
he didn’t care! he b’lieved the reason he couldn’t 
catch any fish was ’cause Coloned Coon smacked 
his lips so loud a while ago, when he ate that big 
crab. 

Then, Kim, ’fore Colonel Coon could say an- 
other word what do you s’pose happened? Why, 
the big Perch went out of sight and come up 
again, right under where JNIr. Rabbit’s feet 
were hanging down, and it reached up and bit 
one of them, and then — well, then, Kim, Mr. 
Rabbit thought a snake had him, and he jumped 
so quick he dropped his pole; and the next sec- 
ond he was in the water and under the water! 


MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 59 


When he come up sputtering, he reached out 
and held onto the side of the log, and told 
Colonel Coon for mercy’s sake to pull him up. 
Colonel Coon said he was ’fraid he would fall in 
too. Mr. Rabbit told him to lie down on the 
log and let his feet hang over and he would catch 
hold of his tail and climb out ; and that was what 
Colonel Coon did. 

Then Mr. Rabbit caught the tail and gave it 
a big pull, and Colonel Coon went into the water 
and under the water, while Mr. Rabbit laughed 
and jumped out onto the log and started home. 
When Colonel Coon got out and shook himself 
and picked up his bucket of crabs, Mr. Rabbit 
was out of sight. Maybe he wasn’t mad inside 
and wet outside! 

So Colonel Coon went home and made a fire 
and dried his clothes; and Mr. Rabbit walked 
’long the side of the branch a little way, till he 
came to the place where he knew he would find 
the little beavers muddying the water with their 
fiat tails, so they could catch fish for their sup- 
per. When he got there, one little beaver had 
gone up to the branch to scare the fish down to 
the muddy place, one little beaver picked them 
out of the mud, one little beaver laid them on 


CO DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


the bank, and one little beaver strung them on a 
string. 

Mr. Rabbit looked at them from behind a 
stump and laughed some ; then, Kim, what do you 
s’pose he did? He just jumped right by the side 
of the one that was stringing the fish and scared 
him so bad, he just turned over and over and 
over, one time, two times, three times, then 
plunked into the water and under the water and 
out of sight. Then they all went into the water 
and under the water and out of sight, ’fore you 
could look this way and that way. 

Mr. Rabbit picked up the string of fish and 
laughed and laughed and walked on. When he 
came to Mr. Fox’s house he saw him sitting 
asleep on the door-step. So INIr. Rabbit crept on 
tiptoes right close up to the coop, and told Red- 
combs he had come to do what he had promised 
him he would; and the Rooster said, “Thanky, 
thanky!” 

So Mr. Rabbit took the big stick off the top 
of the coop, and Redcombs jumped out. 

Mr. Fox opened his eyes at that ver-ee min- 
ute and started after them, and the Rooster went 
home, running with his feet and fiying with liis 
wings both at the same time. 


MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 61 


Mr. Rabbit laughed and jumped the fence, 
and the brush pile, and the big log, and the 
ditches, and the briar-patch, and Mr. Fox right 
after him. But when they got to the briar-patch 
Mr. Fox stopped, for he had on his Sunday coat 
and didn’t want to tear holes in it. So he 
started back home, and he met Mrs. Cat on her 
way home, and he said: 

“Good-day, Mistress Pussy! How do you do 
to-day?” 

“Good-day, Mr. Fox! I am feeling poorly, 
poorly.” 

Then Mr. Fox told her he b’lieved fish was 
the very thing she needed to make her feel spry 
again; and he whispered to her that one of her 
neighbors was going to have fish for supper, and 
if she would do just ’zastly like her smellers told 
her to do, they would take her straight as she 
could go to the right place. Mrs. Cat said 
“Thanky!” she would mind them. So Mr. Fox 
went home, and Mrs. Cat walked along with her 
head up in the air, snifBng just the way her 
smellers told her to go. 

Well, Kim, by that time Mr. Rabbit had got 
home. Mrs. Rabbit had put her little apron on, 
and made the fire in the stove, when he walked 


62 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


in and told her he had the finest kind of luck to- 
day, even if the biggest fish did fall back in the 
water ; and he told her to hurry and get the sup- 
per ready, while he sat by the stove and rested 
and smoked his pipe and read the paper. 

Mrs. Rabbit took the string of fish and she 
saw a little mud on them ; then she looked at ]Mr. 
Rabbit’s clothes and there was not the leastest 
bit of mud on them; then she turned her head to 
one side and laughed a little just this way, but 
she didn’t say a word to Mr. Rabbit ’bout it, for 
she was ’fraid his ears might lie flat down. 
And, Kim, ’fore most folks would have b’lieved 
it, she had that supper cooked and on the table, 
and it did smell so good ! Then she took off her 
apron, went to the glass and smoothed her hair 
down all around her face, just this way; then 
’cause Mr. Rabbit was nodding in his chair, she 
thought it would be a good time to run to the 
spring for a pitcher of fresh water. 

Then, oh, Kim, Kim! what do you s’pose hap- 
pened? You could never guess, not even if you 
thought and thought as long a time as your 
tail is long, so I will tell you. Well, Mr. Rab- 
bit dropped his pipe, and waked up just as Mrs. 
Rabbit got in the door with the pitcher of water ; 


MR. RABBIT GOES FISHING 63 


and they both saw Mrs. Cat, who lived at the 
white house on the hill, jump on the table, snatch 
up the dish of fish, jump out of the window and 
run off with it! 

Mrs. Rabbit dropped the pitcher on the floor 
and broke it into splinters, then run to the win- 
dow and looked out; but by that time the cat’s 
tail was getting over the fence a quarter of a 
mile away. Poor Mrs. Rabbit felt so bad ’bout 
losing the nice fish, that she just sat down in her 
rocking chair, threw her handkerchief over her 
face, and cried “boohoo boohoo oh boo-oo-oo-oo- 
hoo-hoo-ZiOo/'’^ just that way. And Mr. Rab- 
bit — well, Kim, Mr. Rabbit did more things than 
anybody could ’member to tell about. Then he 
turned twenty-nine summersaults and went to 
bed, and pulled the cover up over his head, and 
just left the tiniest bit of one of his long ears 
sticking out, he felt so bad! 

And that’s all about how Mr. Rabbit went 
fishing. 


MR. RABBIT AND THE BIG MELON 


S5 


MR. RABBIT AND THE BIG MELON 


O NE day old man Tortoise, who lived on the 
other side of the creek, thought he would 
come and visit his folks who lived on this side 
of the creek. So he started early, for he walked 
slow with a stick ; but when he got to the big hiU 
it took him so long to get to the top of it, that 
the sun was down by the time he reached Mr. 
Rabbit’s water-melon patch. So he said he 
would make a bed under the green vines and 
leaves and stay there till next morning. 

He began to scratch a hole right by the side 
of the big melon, and when he had it large 
enough, what do you s’pose happened, Kim? 
Why, the melon started to roll over, and ’fore 
Mr. Tortoise could back out of the way, it came 
plunk! right on the top of his back, and it was 
so heavy that he couldn’t budge. So there he 
was, a long way from home, with the big melon 
mashing him most flat, and his folks at home and 
his visiting folks didn’t know a single thing 
’bout it. 


67 


68 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


Well, the next morning Mr. Rabbit told Mrs. 
Rabbit he wanted some peas for his dinner, and 
that he would take the httle basket with the han- 
dle on it and go to the patch and get some, and 
for her to have the pot on the stove and the 
water boihng by the time he got back ; and Mrs. 
Rabbit said she would. Then he told her that 
after he had filled the basket he would go to the 
melon patch and thump the big melon and lis- 
ten if it was ripe enough to eat. He said he 
didn’t b’lieve it ever would thump right, for he 
had tried it every day for two weeks and it never 
said anything but jpank — when it ought to say 
punk! 

Mrs. Rabbit told him to thump it just this 
way, right ’bout the middle of the top, then lis- 
ten hard as ever he could, and the thump would 
tell him right. Mr. Rabbit asked her if she 
s’posed he didn’t know how to thump a melon, 
and if he hadn’t been thumping them that a- way 
all his life. Then Mr. Rabbit tied his silk hand- 
kerchief round his neck, hung the basket on his 
arm, and went out to pick peas. 

Well, he walked along real slow, with his 
hands back of him, and his pipe in his mouth, 
and right round the bend in the road he met Mr. 


MR. RABBIT AND THE MELON 69 


Rat, with his pipe in his mouth and his hands 
back of him, and Mr. Rabbit didn’t know Mr. 
Rat was there, and Mr. Rat didn’t know Mr. 
Rabbit was there till their pipes went together 
clicks just that way. Then Mr. Rabbit jumped 
back quick as you could think and said he begged 
Mr. Rat’s pardon, and told him he didn’t know 
he was in a mile of him till his pipe told him 
’bout it, and he hoped his pipe did not break his 
pipe, but said he was ’fraid it did, for his was a 
real good, new pipe and the tobacco in it was 
the ver-ee best that could be found in Rabbit- 
town. 

Now, Kim, if you know what Mr. Rabbit was 
trying to tell him, I will go back and tell you 
what Mr. Rat said. 

Mr. Rat jumped back quick as Mr. Rabbit did, 
and begged his pardon, and told him he didn’t 
know he was in two miles of him till his pipe told 
him, and he said he hoped his pipe didn’t break 
his pipe, but he was ’fraid it did for his pipe was 
the newest and best that could be found, and the 
tobacco in it was way yonder better than any 
that could be found in Rabbit-town. 

Now if you know what thafs all about. I’ll 
tell you what Mr. Rabbit said. He told Mr. 


70 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


Rat he would like real well to put a proof on 
that. Then Mr. Rat told Mr. Rabbit that was 
a ver-ee easy thing to do, for he would let him 
smoke his pipe a while, if he would let him smoke 
his pipe at the same time. Mr. Rabbit said that 
was a fine idea, so they swapped pipes then and 
there, and sat down on the side of the road, and 
’menced to smoke. 

And Mr. Rabbit asked Mr. Rat when he had 
been to town, and Mr. Rat said he had just come 
from town. Mr. Rabbit asked him what was 
the news, and Mr. Rat said, more than he could 
tell, folks going into town and folks coming 
way from town; and he heard, too, that the wind 
was most sure to be blowing another way by 
day after to-morrow. Mr. Rabbit said, “You 
don’t say sol” And Mr. Rat said, yes, he did. 

Then he asked Mr. Rabbit what was the news 
in Rabbit-town, and Mr. Rabbit said, “Oh, plenty 
of news! Folks coming out of town and folks 
going into town, and the wind was most bound 
to change ’fore day after to-morrow.” 

And Mr. Rat said, “Is that sol” And Mr. 
Rabbit said it was. 

Then Mr. Rabbit took his watch out of his 
pocket, opened it, looked at both the hands long 



‘‘ Roll it ofF! Roll it off!” 










T 5f ' 







MR. RABBIT AND THE MELON 71 


enough for them to tell him the time of day, 
and shut it again and put it in his pocket. Then 
he stood up and gave Mr. Rat his pipe, and told 
him he could smoke better tobacco than that any 
other day. And Mr. Rat stood up and gave 
Mr. Rabbit his pipe, and told him he could 
smoke twice as good tobacco as that any other 
day. 

Then Mr. Rat walked on with his head ver-ee 
high, and Mr. Rabbit walked on with his head 
ver-ee high, and he got to the pea patch and had 
picked the peas and filled the basket ’fore he 
thought ’bout laughing ’stead of being mad at 
Mr. Rat. After he had laughed a real good 
laugh he went to the melon patch. 

When he got to the big melon and was just 
about to thump it, he thought he saw it move a 
little. He jumped, took his handkerchief out 
of his back pocket, and rubbed one eye. Then 
he rubbed the other eye, but the melon was still 
as could be. So then Mr. Rabbit laughed, and 
said he most b’lieved he ’spected to see it grow 
some! 

He put his handkerchief in his pocket, put the 
basket of peas on the ground, stood over the 
melon and said, “My, how it does grow! It is 


72 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


this much higher ’hove the green leaves than it 
was yesterday.” 

And he said didn’t he wish it would grow ripe 
as fast as it grew bigger! Then he thumped it 
right on the middle of the top, just hke Mrs. 
Rabbit told him to do — though he wouldn’t ’fess 
it to her — and turned one ear closer to it and lis- 
tened. 

And, then, Kim, what do you s’pose hap- 
pened? Well, if you would b’lieve it, that 
melon raised up a little and said, ‘‘Roll it off! 
Roll it offr 

This time Mr. Rabbit jumped back most three 
feet and stood still, ’cause he didn’t know what 
to think of his eyes and his ears, and his eyes 
rolled till you couldn’t see anything but the 
whites. 

The melon raised up some more, and said, 
“Roll it off! Roll it off! and be quick ’bout it, 
or I’ll be mashed flat as the bill of a greenback 
paper dollar!” 

Mr. Rabbit didn’t wait to hear any more. He 
let out a^'whoop, he was so scared he forgot the 
basket, and started for home without his peas. 
The faster he run and the nearer he got home, 
the scareder he was; and when Mrs. Rabbit 


MR. RABBIT AND THE MELON 73 


looked out the door, his hat was gone, his whis- 
kers were looking back, his coat-tails were stand- 
ing out straight behind him, he was touching the 
ground one second, and the next he was jumping 
way over the bushes, and that was the way he 
come home. Up and down, up and down; — 
Mrs. Rabbit said she did not know whether he 
would be up or down when he got to the gate, 
but she would run, anyway, and have the gate 
open for him. 

So she ran hard as she could and opened the 
gate, just as Mr. Rabbit hopped over it, and 
Mrs. Rabbit had to dodge fast as she could to 
keep him from coming down on her head. 

When Mr. Rabbit reached the bottom door- 
step, Mrs. Rabbit asked him if the Dog was after 
him, and he shook his head. And Mrs. Rabbit 
asked him if the Big Man with his gun was after 
him, and he shook his head. Then Mrs. Rabbit 
asked him what ever and ever and ever in the 
world was the matter with him, and Mr. Rabbit 
said, “The big melon!” 

Mrs. Rabbit asked him what "bout the big 
melon? For goodness sakes, tell her quick! 
And Mr. Rabbit told her the melon had grown 
so big it was walking and talking! 


74 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


JMrs. Rabbit hopped back most as far as JNIr. 
Rabbit did, and asked him what was the matter 
with him, to make him talk that a-way ; and JNIr. 
Rabbit told her if she didn’t b’lieve him, she 
could go and see for herself. Mrs. Rabbit told 
him to come along and she would go right that 
minute. But Mr. Rabbit told her she would 
have to go by herself, for there was so much the 
matter with his knees he didn’t b’lieve he could 
walk that far. 

Then Mrs. Rabbit ran in the house and got 
Mr. Rabbit’s walking-stick and gave it to him; 
and she took him by the arm and they started 
to the melon patch. But when they got in sight 
of it Mr. Rabbit sat right flat down on the 
ground and told Mrs. Rabbit he just couldn’t go 
a step farther, — there was more the matter with 
his knees than had ever been before in all his life 
and other folkes lives put together. 

So Mrs. Rabbit ran most to the big melon, 
then crept ’long right slow till she got to it ; then 
she leaned over and looked at it — and that melon 
raised up a little and said, “Roll it off! Why 
don’t you roll it off quick?” 

Mrs. Rabbit was so ’stonished she couldnT 
move, but just kept looking at the big melon, 


MR. RABBIT AND THE MELON 75 


and on the ground all round it. And when it 
raised up again, Kim, what do you s’pose she 
saw? Not a thing but Mr. Tortoise’s feet pok- 
ing out from under it! She asked him how did 
he get in such a fix as that, and what was he do- 
ing there, anyway? And Mr. Tortoise told her 
how it happened, and what a drefful time 
he was having, and if the big melon didn’t get 
off his back ver-ee quick he wouldn’t be worth a 
pot of soup when it did get off. 

Then Mrs. Rabbit called to Mr. Rabbit to 
come there quick; but Mr. Rabbit ’tended not 
to hear her. So she ran to him and told him it 
was Mr. Tortoise under the melon, most 
squeezed to a jelly, who was doing all the talk- 
ing, and not the melon at all. She took Mr. 
Rabbit by the arm, but he pulled back some and 
said he b’lieved she didn’t care what danger 
caught him. 

But Mrs. Rabbit held on, and when they got 
back, and Mr. Tortoise said, “Roll it offT 
again, Mr. Rabbit dropped his walking-stick and 
said, why of course he would! He was s’prised 
that Mrs. Rabbit stood there so long ’thout doing 
it! 

So he rolled the melon off Mr. Tortoise’s 


76 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 

back, and Mr. Tortoise came out of the hole and 
brushed the dirt off his clothes and asked Mr. 
Rabbit what made him run ’way and leave him in 
all that trouble? And Mr. Rabbit said he didn’t 
think that Mr. Tortoise minded being mashed a 
little; ’sides it was such a good time to play a 
little joke on Mrs. Rabbit. 

But Mr. Tortoise sniffed and told Mr. Rab- 
bit he was too scared; that he could teU when 
folks were scared by looking at their knees. 
Then Mr. Rabbit picked up his walking-stick 
and started home, and said he didn’t care ’bout 
talking any longer to folks who didn’t know a 
joke when it went by. 

Mr. Tortoise told Mrs. Rabbit he was much 
’bliged to them for saving him. Then he went 
on his way to make his visit, and Mrs. Rabbit 
picked up the basket of peas; and all the way 
back to the house the more she thought ’bout how 
Mr. Rabbit looked when his coat-tails were try- 
ing to keep up with him, the more she laughed. 
And all that evening, and that night when she 
was cooking supper, she had to run out doors, 
and round the house, and get in the chimney 
corner, and put her apron in her mouth, to keep 
from laughing out loud. 


WHO ATE THE BIG MELON? 


77 


WHO ATE THE BIG MELON? 


ELL, Kim, when the big melon thumped 



V V right and said punk! Mr. Babbit sent 
word for old General Bear, Colonel Coon, Ma- 
jor Possum, and Mr. Rat to come to his melon 
patch that night by moon up, and help him ’joy 
eating it. So he didn’t eat much all that day, 
and at supper he told Mrs. Rabbit the melon 
was going to taste so-o good that he wouldn’t 
eat any supper ’tall. And he said, too, he would 
go early, so the folks would not be ver-ee hun- 
gry and would not eat much. 

When Mr. Rabbit got to the patch he didn’t 
have to wait long ’fore the folks came. Mr. 
Rabbit saw they all looked hungry, and he was 
’fraid they would eat a lot of that fine melon; 
and how he did hate to cut it! He told him- 
self it was ’most a pity he ’vited them to come; 
and ’cause he was feeling that way ’bout it, he 
told them to let’s ’joy the outside of it a while 
’fore they cut it; and to pass away the time, 
s’pose they would each one tell where they 


79 


80 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


thought was the next best place to be and the 
next best thing to eat, ’sides sitting in the patch 
eating a fine, ripe melon. 

Mr. Rat said, “In the Big Man’s cellar right 
by the cheese-box,” 

Major Possum said, “Up a ’simmon tree eat- 
ing ’simmons after the frost has come and made 
them sweet.” 

Colonel Coon said, “Sitting by the water in 
the spring branch, rolling crabs in his hands, then 
eating them fast as he could.” 

Old General Bear cleared his throat and said, 
“Standing by the beehives eating honey.” 

Then Mr. Rabbit thought a long time, and he 
said he didn’t b’lieve anything could come within 
a mile of a good, big, sweet, juicy, ripe melon.” 
He said these words right slow, and every one of 
the others fidgetted and licked their mouths and 
looked at that big melon. 

So Mr. Rabbit couldn’t put off cutting it any 
longer; and he said, “Now ’tention everybody.” 
Then he made a mark ’bout this far from one 
end of it, and he said to himself, “TAaf much 
for one.” Then he marked off one more time, 
then one more time, then one more time, and 
every time he marked he said, "'That much for 



“That much for one.” 









f 

I fi 

r '' 


f < 



It? 


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v-Hf 

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4 

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4- v ] 

% 'll 

W« 

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• 



WHO ATE THE BIG MELON? 81 


one.’’ And he marked it so that half of it would 
be left over for him, as he had de-served it after 
he had thumped it so much, and had to wait so 
long for it to get ripe, ’thout the big scare 
thrown in. 

Then he said it could not be helped, so he 
stuck the knife in, and it went in so easy Mr. 
Rabbit’s eyes danced, and he said, “Boys, how 
sweet and red it must be!” 

Then, Kim, what do you s’pose happened? 
Well, ’fore the knife had time to cut much, that 
melon was in two pieces and Mr. Rabbit got 
scared, for he knew his knife didn’t do it. He 
peeped right quick into one half, then the other 
half, just this way; and, Kim, there wasn’t any 
more melon inside the two halves than there is in 
your water-cup right this minute ! 

Then Mr. Rabbit looked at all the folks, and 
jumped up and danced all about, and said, 
“Who eat my melon? Who eat my melon?” 

But Mr. Rat and Colonel Coon and Major 
Possum just looked at the two melon halves 
without any red in them, then looked at Mr. 
Rabbit dancing up and down; and old General 
Bear turned his face to one side, just this way, 
and laughed a little, but nobody saw him. 


82 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


Then when Mr. Rabbit had danced a whole 
lot more, he said he would make them tell who 
eat his melon, — that he would put the jury man 
after them. He said he would be the jury man 
himself and see if he could not make them tell 
’fore they left that ver-ee spot of ground they 
were sitting on. 

Then old General Bear told Colonel Coon and 
JMajor Possum and Mr. Rat that if Mr. Rabbit 
thought his neighbors would do things like that, 
they must not give him any ’faction when they 
talked back at him. 

Then Mr. Rabbit told Mr. Rat to stand up, 
and Mr. Rat stood up. Mr. Rabbit asked him 
if he cut his melon in two halves and eat all the 
sweet red meat that was in it, then stuck the two 
halves together again, and for Mr. Rat to say 
yes or no, and put his foot down on it. 

Then Mr. Rabbit said, “Yes or no, Mr. Rat? 
Did you eat my melon?” 

And Mr. Rat said, “That is for you to find 
out, Mr. Rabbit.” 

Mr. Rabbit danced around, first on one foot, 
then on the other, and he asked Colonel Coon 
and Major Possum the ver-ee same words; and 
they both told Mr. Rabbit the same thing Mr. 


WHO ATE THE BIG MELON? 83 

Rat did, and Mr. Rabbit danced some more 
again. 

Then he asked Old General Bear if he eat the 
melon, and old General Bear told him to get 
through with the others first; that he thought 
three were as many as Mr. Rabbit could manage 
at one time. 

Then Mr. Rabbit used up a whole lot of fine, 
jury man’s talk and questioned them straight, 
then crossways, trying to trip them down; and 
he said he bet his hat the seed were yellow. 
Then they all laughed, and Mr. Rabbit let his 
foot come down on the ground hard, shook his 
fist at them, and said, “Silence!” just that way, 
and they all silenced. 

Then Mr. Rabbit looked at Mr. Rat and said 
he bet his coat that it smelt good as green cheese, 
and Mr. Rat said he s’posed it did. And Mr. 
Rabbit looked at Major Possum and said he bet 
his watch it tasted good as wild grapes, and Mr. 
Possum said he s’posed it did. And Mr. Rab- 
bit looked at Colonel Coon and said he bet his 
boots it was sweeter than cake, and Mr. Coon 
said he s’posed it was. 

Then when Mr. Rabbit had danced some more, 
he told old General Bear to stand up, and he 


84 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


did, and Mr. Rabbit talked all that fine, jury 
man’s talk to him, then asked him if his melon 
didn’t taste good as honey. But old General 
Bear told Mr. Rabbit that if Mr. Rat and Ma- 
jor Possum and Colonel Coon knew so well how 
it smelt and tasted, Mr. Rabbit must be a ver-ee, 
ver-ee poor jury man not to know who eat the 
melon, ’thout him saying it tasted good as honey ! 
Then old General Bear laughed some more, 
and said, “Good even!” and started off. And 
they all said “Good even!” but didn’t tell Mr. 
Rabbit how much they had ’joyed themselves. 
And Mr. Rat and Colonel Coon and Major Pos- 
sum walked away together, and they said, what 
made old General Bear turn the talk ’gainst 
them? Did he eat the melon? And they said 
they didn’t know, but they would go home, eat 
some supper, sit by the fire and think ’bout it; 
and they did, and Mr. Rabbit didn’t hear any 
more of them that night, ’cept old General 
Bear’s laugh, that came back from over the hills 
and staid in the melon patch a while, then went 
away. 

Then Mr. Rabbit sat on the ground by the 
two melon halves, run his finger all round in one 
half, then looked on his finger and, Kim, there 


WHO ATE THE BIG MELON? 85 


wasn’t as much on it as you could put on a pin. 
He run his finger round the other half, but it 
was no use; there was no more melon on it than 
there was the first time, maybe not as much. 
Mr. Rabbit shut his eyes, and put his finger in 
his mouth, but that was worse than ever, for 
there wasn’t enough on it for Mr. Rabbit to even 
’magine he could taste it. 

Then Mr. Rabbit ’menced to think hard as 
ever he could, to find out who eat his big melon. 
It couldn’t have been Mr. Rat or Colonel Coon 
or Major Possum, ’cause they had stood up ’fore 
the best jury man in the State and it couldn’t 
be proved on them. He asked himself if Mr. 
Tortoise eat it, after he was kind enough to roll 
the melon off him, and after he had scared him 
most to death. And Mr. Rabbit shook his head 
and said “No!” for Mr. Tortoise didn’t stay 
there long enough. He asked himself if Mrs. 
Rabbit eat it; but Mr. Rabbit shook his head and 
said, “No!” for it was all inside itself when he 
thumped it that morning. Then Mr. Rabbit 
asked himself if he eat it — and he shook his 
head. He felt too empty for that. And he 
’membered with a groan that he hadn’t had any 
supper at all. 


86 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


Then he asked himself who did eat that 
melon? And just then he ’membered that he 
had seen Captain Crow flying over the patch 
that afternoon ; and late as it was he grabbed his 
stick and went over the fence to the neck of 
woods where he lived. Byme-by who should he 
see but Captain Crow himself, come flying home. 
He had been out to a lodge meeting. 

“Howdy, neighbor Rabbit?” he called. 
“What is keeping you up so late?” 

“I’m trying to find out what color seeds are in 
this year’s melons,” said Mr. Rabbit. 

“Yellow, I think,” said Captain Crow; “at 
least that’s what old General Bear tells me. I 
never touch melon seeds. They don’t ’gree with 
me. But you must ’scuse me, neighbor Rabbit, 
as I must get home. My wife always waits up 
for me when I’ve been to lodge meeting. Good 
night I” 

Mr. Rabbit said, “Good night!” and shook his 
head and started home, walking slow. And all 
the time he was thinking to himself : 

“Now WHO DID EAT that melon?” 


t 


MR. RABBIT GATHERS HIS GROUND- 

PEAS 


87 


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MR. RABBIT GATHERS HIS GROUND- 
PEAS 


NE morning Mr. Rabbit told Mrs. Rabbit 



he wanted to gather his ground-peas that 
day; so she must get up, cook breakfast, and 
have it on the table by the time he had washed 
his face and brushed his whiskers. And, Kim, 
Mrs. Rabbit did have it ready just that quick. 

When Mr. Rabbit had not eaten but six plates 
of batter-cakes, and had told Mrs. Rabbit he 
would thank her for another cup of coffee, some- 
body knocked at the door. Mr. Rabbit said, 
“Come in!” and the door opened, and Captain 
Crow walked in and said, 

“Good day to you both! It is a fine day out- 
side !” 

Mr. Rabbit said it was that ver-ee thing, and 
then he told Captain Crow that he wanted to 
gather all his ground-peas before three o’clock 
and eleven minutes that afternoon. And he 
told Captain Crow that he liked pleasant com- 
pany so ver-ee much, that if he would go with 


89 


90 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


him, so he would have somebody to talk to while 
he worked, he would let him have all the ground- 
peas that he had picked up by the time Mrs. 
Rabbit blew the horn for dinner. Captain Crow 
said he would certainly do it. 

Then Mrs. Rabbit told him to sit right down 
and have some breakfast. Captain Crow said 
he did not have ver-ee much appetite this morn- 
ing, but he b’lieved he would try to eat a little. 
And, Kim, if you would b’lieve it, he had so 
much appetite that Mrs. Rabbit had to keep on 
cooking batter-cakes till ’most ten o’clock. 

Well, after breakfast, while Mr. Rabbit was 
lighting his pipe, and putting the clock up one 
hour when he thought Captain Crow was not 
looking, and Mrs. Rabbit was washing the 
dishes. Captain Crow walked ’bout the room pre- 
tending to look at the pictures on the wall. But 
he must have been up to some mischief, for one 
time he was close to Mrs. Rabbit’s work-basket, 
and another time he was standing pretty close to 
the dinner-horn; but Mr. and Mrs. Rabbit were 
too busy to pay ’tention to him. 

Well, after Mr. Rabbit had given the little 
bag that was hanging behind the door to Cap- 
tain Crow, and found one for himself, and 


MR. RABBIT’S GROUND-PEAS 91 


pulled the hoe from under the bed, and got out 
of the door and down the steps and most to the 
gate, he called to Mrs. Rabbit to be sure and 
commence to blow the horn three seconds and a 
half before twelve, so she would be sure to be 
blowing it while the clock was striking ; and Mrs. 
Rabbit said that was a fine idea. Then Captain 
Crow laughed some, and when Mr. Rabbit 
looked round quick, he said he b’lieved some 
smoke from Mr. Rabbit’s pipe had got in his 
eyes, so Mr. Rabbit turned his face and his 
mouth and his pipe ’way from Captain Crow, 
just this way, so he did not see Captain Crow 
laugh so easy to himself that it shook him all 
over. 

When they got outside the gate and closed it, 
and were going down the lane, Mrs. Rabbit ran 
to the door and asked Mr. Rabbit if she hadn’t 
better go to the field to let them know when 
twelve o’clock came, that the wind might be 
blowing wrong for them to hear the horn. But 
Mr. Rabbit told her to stay right in the house 
and do just like he told her, and if she stood in 
the window when she blew the horn, they would 
have no trouble ’tall hearing it. 

Well, Kim, when they got to the field they 


92 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


both talked while ]Mr. Rabbit hoed a row and 
Captain Crow ’menced to pick up ground-peas. 
Then they both talked and picked up, and picked 
up and talked, and they soon had one row gath- 
ered. Then Mr. Rabbit ’menced to hoe another 
row, and when he had got half-way through it, 
the thought came to him that Captain Crow was 
getting more than he was, for he was picking up 
while he was hoeing. So he told Captain Crow 
to stop until he finished the row, and Captain 
Crow said he couldn’t think of doing such a 
thing, — that he hadn’t forgot the ’greement so 
soon as that; he ’membered well that he was to 
have all he could pick up till the horn blew. 

Well, Kim, Mr. Rabbit quit talking then and 
did some thinking. Then he ’menced to hoe 
fast^ but when he looked round. Captain Crow 
was picking up faster. Then he hoed faster 
than ever, but he soon got so hot he had to stop 
and fan himself with his hat, and while he was 
doing that it looked to him that Captain Crow 
was picking up still faster than ever. So 
JMr. Rabbit took his hoe and leaned over it, 
just this way, and hoed faster and faster and 
FASTER, and ’fore he had any idea of the thing 
he had all the rows dug up. Then he ran back 


MR. RABBIT’S GROUND-PEAS 93 


and ’menced to pick up the ground-peas, but he 
was so tired Captain Crow was getting twice as 
many as he was. 

After awhile, Mr. Rabbit got scared. Cap- 
tain Crow was just as cool and fresh as when he 
’menced, while he was so hot and wanted a drink 
of water so bad that he was most killed. But 
he worked on and on, and there was no talking 
now, you’d better b’lieve: Uncle Phil said, 
everything was so quiet you could hear a pin 
drop. 

At last Mr. Rabbit got so-o tired he thought 
it must be twelve o’clock; and he asked Captain 
Crow if he didn’t think so, too. But Captain 
Crow said he b’lieved it was pretty early yet. 
Then they worked on and on some more, and 
after another while Mr. Rabbit thought to him- 
self that if twelve hadn’t come yet, he wouldn’t 
be worth the tiniest ground-pea in his patch, 
when it did get here. He said he b’lieved it was 
twelve, in fact, he knew it was twelve, for when 
he was working in the field he could always tell 
to a minute, when it was time to go to the house 
for dinner. So he straightened his back real 
quick, put his hand to the side of his head, just 
this way, and said, real sharp. 


94 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


“It’s twelve! Listen, Captain Crow, don’t 
you hear the horn blow? Let’s go home to din- 
ner ’fore it gets cold.” 

But Captain Crow said he didn’t hear the 
horn, and ’menced to pick all the faster. 

Then Mr. Rabbit said he would run there be- 
hind the bushes and stand on the willow stump 
and hsten. And when he got there he put his 
hand to his mouth and said, “Toot, to-o-o-o, too- 
0 - 0 - 0 1” just that way. Then he ran back and 
waved his hat at Captain Crow and said, “Come 
on quick! Don’t you hear the horn blowing?” 

But Captain Crow said he hadn’t heard a 
thing but Mr. Rabbit coughing a little over 
there in the bushes. 

Then Mr. Rabbit got mad, and he took the 
bag of ground-peas off his shoulder, and 
dropped it on the ground, and started home on 
a run, hard as ever he could, to see why Mrs. 
Rabbit had not blown the horn. When he got 
there, if you would b’lieve it, the clock was strik- 
ing two, and Mrs. Rabbit was standing in the 
window just like Mr. Rabbit told her, and hold- 
ing the horn to her mouth with both hands, and 
one side of her face was puffed out, just this 
way. And she told him she had tried her ver-ee 



The trouble with the dinner-horn 





MR. RABBIT’S GROUND-PEAS 95 


best on that horn and it would not make the 
leastest bit of a sound. 

Then Mr. Rabbit told her to get down out of 
.the window and give it to him, and he would get 
up there and show her how a horn ought to be 
blown. So he stood up in the window, and he 
puffed up one side of his face, and he tried, and 
the horn just would not blow. Then he asked 
Mrs. Rabbit over his shoulder what had she done 
to that horn, and Mrs. Rabbit said, “Not a sin- 
gle thing.” 

Then Mr. Rabbit puffed up the other side of 
his face and tried again, but it was no use. So 
he jumped on the floor and tried to blow the 
horn, but that was no better place than the win- 
dow. He stood on a chair, then on the table, 
then he got so mad he sat right down on the 
floor, and beat the horn on the planks in front of 
him, just this way, and then, Kim, what do you 
s’pose happened? Why, Mrs. Rabbit’s thimble 
rolled right out of that horn, and they both knew 
in a second that Captain Crow had put it in there 
when he was walking ’bout the room that morn- 
ing. 

Mr. Rabbit jumped up quick as you could 
think, and said to Mrs. Rabbit, “Where is my 


06 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


fishing pole? Give me my fishing pole! I’ll 
pole him out of my ground-pea patch!” 

But ’fore Mrs. Rabbit could hop one time, 
Mr. Rabbit had the long pole and was outside 
the gate, and then — well, Kim, if you take a 
long piece of rubber in both your hands and 
stretch it out long and say, “This end is at Mr. 
Rabbit’s house and this end is in his ground-pea 
patch, then turn loose the end at the house and 
see how quick it will be at the patch — well, Mr. 
Rabbit was back at the patch that quick. 

But that wasn’t quick enough for Captain 
Crow. When he saw Mr. Rabbit running with 
his fishing pole, he just tied his own little bag 
of ground-peas, and hung it ’cross one shoulder, 
and picked up Mr. Rabbit’s bag and hung it 
’cross the other shoulder; and laughed and ran 
home so fast, that he was across the fence and 
in the woods ’fore you could say “scat!” And 
Mr. Rabbit sat right down on the ground, and 
you could tell how mad he was by how fast he 
winked his eyes ; and he said he didn’t care if he 
never eat a bit of dinner that day. And he said, 
too, he would never, never, again ask Captain 
Crow to be pleasant company and help him 
gather his ground-peas. 


MR. RABBIT IRONS HIS COLLAR 


97 


/ 



MR. RABBIT IRONS HIS COLLAR 


O NE morning right after breakfast, Mrs. 

Rabbit told Mr. Rabbit she b’lieved she 
would cook him some dinner and put it in the 
pantry for him, so she could go with Mrs. Long- 
Ears over to Mrs. Brown-Ears to spend the day 
and help her quilt out her new log-cabin quilt. 
And Mr. Rabbit said, “All right,” and told her 
to go along, and she needn’t leave any dinner; 
that he was not feeling ver-ee well, and he 
b’lieved he would go over to Colonel Coon’s 
house and spend the day, for Colonel Coon was 
a real fine story-teller, and he b’lieved a good 
laugh was just what he needed. 

So Mrs. Rabbit got her needle and thimble, 
put on a white apron, tied on her pink sunbon- 
net, and went away; and Mr. Rabbit sat by the 
stove and rested and smoked his pipe and read 
the paper. After a while, he looked at the 
clock, and got up in a hurry and searched in all 
the bureau drawers, ’cept the right one, for a 
99 


Lofa 


100 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


fresh collar, but he couldn’t find one. Then he 
thought it would be no trouble ’tall to iron one; 
he knew just where to find them, for he saw 
Mrs. Rabbit put them over there in the chair 
after she had sprinkled them and rolled them in 
a towel, so they would be ready for her to iron 
that evening after she got home. 

He got out the ironing-board, and put one end 
on the table and the other on a chair ; then he got 
a damp collar and spread it on the board. He 
said to himself that the collar was “awful wet” 
but he “guessed a hot iron would soon dry it.” 
Then he ’membered he had to wait till he had 
heated one; so he put it on the stove and sat 
down to read, and he read and he read, and when 
he thought ’bout the iron again the fire was out 
and the iron ’most as cold as when he put it on 
the stove. 

So he made up a big fire again, and by that 
time he was so thirsty he said he b’lieved he 
would get a glass of buttermilk. But when he 
looked in the pitcher there was not even a drop 
in it, for Mrs. Rabbit had washed it that ver-ee 
morning. 

Mr. Rabbit kept a-looking, and byme-by he 
went behind the stove and took the top off of the 



Mr. Rabbit irons his collar. 


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MR. RABBIT’S COLLAR 


101 


churn and peeped in and said, “Hurrah!” just 
this way, “the milk is turned; it will be no trou- 
ble ’tall to churn it while the iron is heating.” 
And he said, too, wouldn’t Mrs. Rabbit be 
s’prised when she got home and found that he 
had ironed a collar, and churned, and gone visit- 
ing besides. 

So Mr. Rabbit ’menced to churn and whistle a 
tune, and when he thought of the iron again it 
was most red-hot; but he said the hotter the bet- 
ter, so he took it off the stove, and hurried to the 
table, and set that iron right down on the collar ; 
and, Kim, you could hear that water si-z-z~z 
under it! The steam came up and burned his 
hand, and Mr. Rabbit set the iron on the iron- 
ing-ring quick and said he would let it cool a 
while. Then he went back to churning, but he 
didn’t whistle so loud now; he was getting wor- 
ried, for it was most time for him to start to 
Colonel Coon’s house. 

Well, ’bout that time Captain Crow came to 
the door, and he told Mr. Rabbit that he was on 
his way to spend the day with Colonel Coon, and 
he asked Mr. Rabbit if he didn’t want to go too. 
Mr. Rabbit said that was the ver-ee thing he was 
hurrying to do. And Captain Crow said as it 


102 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


was getting late he would come in and help him 
get through with his work, so they could start. 
Mr. Rabbit said all right, and he told Captain 
Crow to sit in the chair and finish churning while 
he ironed the collar. 

Captain Crow sat down and churned and 
churned, and Mr. Rabbit ’menced to iron again, 
but the iron would not run along the collar, but 
stuck fast to it; and when Mr. Rabbit pulled it 
away, there was a big burnt place on the collar. 
But Mr. Rabbit said that didn’t matter so much, 
as it was on the wrong side. 

Then he asked Captain Crow what he s’posed 
made the iron stick, and Captain Crow said, why 
he ought to have rubbed bees- wax on it ’fore he 
menced to iron, of course. So Mr. Rabbit 
’menced to hunt for the bees-wax, but by the 
time he had found it the iron was not hot enough 
to melt it much; but he rubbed some on anyway. 

By that time. Captain Crow was so tired 
churning he said he would walk out-doors and 
let the wind blow on him a while. Mr. Rabbit 
told him when he came back he could bring an 
armful of stove-wood, and Captain Crow said 
all right. So after he had walked about a while, 
he went to the wood-pile and ’menced picking up 


MR. RABBIT’S COLLAR 


103 


stove- wood. J ust at that minute Mr. Frog 
came hopping by, and Captain Crow looked 
pleasant and said: 

“Good day, Mr. Frog! Where are you going 
in such a ver-ee great hurry?” 

And Mr. Frog said, “Good day. Captain 
Crow! I am going to the spring for a drink of 
water.” 

Then Captain Crow told Mr. Frog not to go 
way down to the spring, but to jump on the 
stove-wood, and he would take him in the house 
so he could get a drink of water ’thout walk- 
ing so far. And he told him that Mr. Rabbit 
was so busy he wouldn’t notice them, and for 
him not to say a word. And he told him, too, 
that Mr. Rabbit was a little cross ’cause the iron 
did not smoothe to please him. Then he told 
Mr. Frog that when he dropped the wood on the 
floor, he could jump on the table, get the drink 
of water, and hop out of the window. 

Mr. Frog said all right, and hopped on the 
wood and went into the house with Captain 
Crow. But, Kim, Captain Crow dropped that 
wood so quick, — I b’lieve he did it a-purpose, — 
that Mr. Frog missed the table, fell right on the 
churn top, the top tipped up, and he was right 


104 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


in the churn ’fore you could say “Jack Robin- 
son!” 

Then Captain Crow laughed, but so Mr. Frog 
couldn’t hear him, and he whispered to Mr. Frog 
to just keep jumping, not to stop jumping for 
a single second, and he would get out all right 
after a while. And you’d better b’lieve Mr. 
Frog jumped. 

Now, Kim, what do you s’pose was happen- 
ing to Mr. Rabbit at that ver-ee minute? Well, 
I will tell you. The bees-wax made the iron 
stick worse than ever, and while Mr. Rabbit was 
pressing haid as he could, trying to get it to 
move along, the end of the board slipped off the 
chair, the iron fell right on the top of Mr. Rab- 
bit’s f oot, and Mr. Rabbit hopped straight ’cross 
the table. Then he held his mashed foot in his 
hand, and he danced and danced all round the 
room on his well foot, and he said the bees-wax 
was the cause of all the trouble. But Captain 
Crow said he knew ’fore Mr. Rabbit ’menced 
that he didn’t know how to iron a collar. 

Then Mr. Rabbit got mad, and lay down on 
the bed, and said he b’lieved he was most killed ; 
and then, ’fore he knew it, he was fast asleep, 
and that evening ’bout the time for Mrs. Rabbit 


MR. RABBIT’S COLLAR 


105 


to come home he waked up, sat on the side of 
the bed, and looked round for Captain Crow. 
But there was no Captain Crow there, for he 
had hurried away as soon as Mr. Rabbit went to 
sleep. 

Mr. Rabbit looked first at one foot, then at the 
other, and he said he was most sure one of them 
was mashed, but he couldn’t tell which one. So 
he reached under the bed, got his walking-stick 
and limped over to the churn, and lifted up the 
top and looked in to see if Captain Crow had 
got the butter ’fore he left. 

Well, Kim, what do you s’pose he saw? 
There was a big lump of butter on top of the 
milk, and Mr. Frog was sitting on top of the 
butter, — that is, he was on the butter the second 
Mr. Rabbit looked down. But the ver-ee necct 
second he was in Mr. Rabbit’s face! Mr. Rab- 
bit hopped right ’cross the stove and rubbed the 
milk out of his eyes, and then he saw Mr. Frog 
sitting in the chair. 

“Big spoons ! What are you doing in my but- 
termilk, Mr. Frog?” he said. 

But ’fore Mr. Frog could say a word, the 
door opened and Mrs. Rabbit came in, and she 


106 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


said, “Good gracious! whatever is the matter 
with everything in the house, and everybody in 
the house?” 

Then Mr. Frog told her ’bout Captain Crow 
dropping him in the churn, and how he had to 
jump and jump to save his life till the butter 
come, then after that he was ver-ee comfortable 
sitting on it. 

Then Mr. Rabbit told his troubles, and Mrs. 
Rabbit told them not to think ’bout them a min- 
ute longer, but for Mr. Rabbit to sit right there 
in his chair and smoke his pipe, and for Mr. 
Frog to sit on the little stool and smoke his pipe, 
while she washed the buttermilk off his coat and 
hung it behind the stove to dry; and then she 
would straighten up everything and cook the 
supper and have it on the table ’fore the clock 
struck six. 

And they all did. 


MR. RABBIT HAS THE TOOTH-ACHE 


107 





MR. RABBIT HAS THE TOOTH- ACHE 


K im, did you ever hear ’bout the time Mr. 

Rabbit had the tooth-ache? I don’t s’pose 
you did, so I will tell you ’bout it now. 

Mr. Rabbit got his feet wet one day, and all 
that night he had the tooth-ache a little. He 
said he was real glad of it, for he had never had 
the tooth-ache before, and he said he would like 
real well to have it hard as could be for ’bout a 
day. He said he would go round whistling real 
lively, and cut the wood, and draw the water, 
then go to the field and hoe the big grass out 
of the corn, and do lots more work, just to show 
Mrs. Rabbit that the tooth-ache was not such a 
bad thing to go round with after all. He said 
she made too much fuss when she had it, but men 
didn’t mind those little things so much. 

So he walked ’bout bare-footed on the cold 
floor a while, but when the ache ’gan to grow 
harder he put his shoes on quick and sat by the 
stove so still, all the while Mrs. Rabbit was cook- 
ing breakfast, that she asked him if he had the 
109 


110 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


’tisms. Mr. Rabbit told her no! what did she 
want to think he had the ’tisms for? And Mr. 
Rabbit sat up straight as he could and tried to 
whistle a little, but the whistle made the ache 
grow so fast that he unpuckered his lips and shut 
his mouth quick, and his teeth came together so 
hard that they raised Mr. Rabbit and his hat 
right out of the chair. 

He slapped his hand to the side of his face and 
groaned a httle, just this way, and Mrs. Rabbit 
asked him what was the matter? Did a coal of 
fire pop on him? And Mr. Rabbit told her no! 
there wasn’t a thing the matter with him, ’cept 
his teeth had started to grow again, and ’cause 
one had grown so much faster than all the others, 
he could not get them to come together ’thout 
making him jump. And he asked Mrs. Rabbit 
what she was going to think was the matter with 
him next? And he said a body couldn’t stay in 
the house long at a time ’thout her asking him, 
“What was the matter? What was the matter?” 

Then Mr. Rabbit got up and went out-doors, 
but you better b’lieve he didn’t stay out there 
long after the cold wind had looked in his mouth. 
It just peeped at the ache, then went on laugh- 
ing round the house. But Mr. Rabbit went 


HE HAS THE TOOTH-ACHE 111 


back and sat by the fire and leaned his face in 
one hand, just this way, and groaned some more. 

Mrs. Rabbit told herself that Mr. Rabbit did 
have the tooth-ache, that she knew the tooth-ache 
when she saw it ; but she said she wouldn’t bother 
him asking him what was the matter. She tried 
not to rattle the dishes much, so that maybe he 
would go to sleep in his chair and be all right 
when he waked up. 

Well, Kim, Mr. Rabbit sat there with one 
hand over the ache and see-sawed up and down, 
just this way, and groaned and groaned, and 
Mrs. Rabbit top-toed ’bout, and wouldn’t let the 
dishes rattle the tiniest bit. 

After a while, Mr. Rabbit told himself the 
tooth-ache was a way out yonder more than he 
cared to have on his shoulders! He b’lieved he 
wouldn’t try to be lively this time, but would 
wait till the neoot time. Then he groaned 
awful, and Mrs. Rabbit just had to ask him 
what was the matter. Mr. Rabbit told her he 
had the tooth-ache, of course ; and he thought she 
knew the tooth-ache well enough to know when 
a body had it ’thout asking, “What was the mat- 
ter?” 

Mrs. Rabbit said she would do something for 


112 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


it real quick, and she asked Mr. Rabbit if it was 
a ver-ee had tooth-ache. Mr. Rabbit said of 
course it was; it was no little ache he had, he 
could tell her that! It was sixteen times bigger 
than all other folkses put together; and did she 
s’pose he would have any other kind? 

By that time Mrs. Rabbit had a little bit of 
cotton on the end of one of her hairpins, and was 
standing in front of Mr. Rabbit telling him to 
open his mouth, and show her where to put it. 
Mr. Rabbit opened his mouth and pointed with 
his finger and said, “Up there!” 

Mrs. Rabbit stood, holding the hairpin in one 
hand, with her head and her neck and her eyes 
up, just this way. But she was so long finding 
the right place, that Mr. Rabbit pointed his fin- 
ger again and said, “There! There!” 

Mrs. Rabbit looked longer than ever, and she 
couldn’t see any place to put the cotton in. 
Then Mr. Rabbit forgot and shut his mouth 
quick, and ’fore he knew it, that shut had made 
him hop out of his chair right over Mrs. Rabbit’s 
head and dance around the room. 

After a while Mr. Rabbit sat down in the 
chair again, and opened his mouth, and pointed 
his finger, and said, “Down there!” 



Dr. Wise-Owl makes a visit 




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f 






HE HAS THE TOOTH-ACHE 113 


Mrs. Rabbit told herself she thought it was 
there” a while ago, but she didn’t tell Mr. 
Rabbit what she thought, for he was such a hop- 
per. She just looked and looked; her neck got 
so tired looking, that she was ’bout to give out, 
when Mr. Rabbit shut his mouth down on his 
pointing finger, so his teeth would not get to- 
gether, and he asked Mrs. Rabbit how much 
longer she was going to stand and poke that hair- 
pin at him? And did she s’pose his mouth was 
a steel trap on triggers, so it could stand open 
all day? 

Mrs. Rabbit told him maybe the ache was on 
the other side, and asked him if it was not ver-ee 
much better since she started to do something for 
it. Mr. Rabbit got mad and said he ought to 
know which side of his mouth his own tooth-ache 
was on; and he said it was not a bit better, he 
didn’t know but it was a leven thousand times 
worse; that he was ’fraid if he let his teeth come 
together again the top of his head would fiy off ; 
that it was jumping ’bout a mile a second now 
just like a steaming engine! 

Then Mr. Rabbit leaned over the fire, and said 
he didn’t want to have any more cotton, or hair- 
pins, either, poked at him, and he just groaned 


114 DOROTHY’S RABBIT STORIES 


awful some more. Mrs. Rabbit said. if the ache 
was jumping that way so early in the morning, 
it was dang’us to think where Mr. Rabbit would 
be by night; and that there was not a single 
thing to do but just send for Doctor Wise-Owl 
to come and bring his screw-twister, and twist 
that long tooth out. So she told Mr. Rabbit she 
would go to the back fence and tell Mrs. Long- 
Ears to let some of her folks run hard as they 
could to Doctor Wise- Owl, and tell him to come 
quick as he could and twist Mr. Rabbit’s tooth- 
ache out; and she did. 

Well, Kim, in less time than it would take you 
to tell it, if you had been listening you might 
have heard Mr. Rabbit’s front gate go “bang,” 
just that way. Mrs. Rabbit ran to open the 
door. Mr. Rabbit peeped out of the window, 
and when he saw Doctor Wise-Owl hurry up the 
w^alk with his twisters in his hand, Mr. Rabbit 
told himself he had too many whiskers not to 
know a thing or two ; and the one thing he knew 
was that the tooth-ache was the biggest thing he 
had ever tackled I But the second thing he knew 
was, that he wasn’t going to sit in that house and 
let something bigger come long and find him! 

So Mr. Rabbit jumped up, forgot all ’bout his 


HE HAS THE TOOTH-ACHE 115 


tooth-ache, took his fishing-pole from ’hove the 
mantelpiece, jumped out of the window and ran 
round the house ; so when Doctor Wise-Owl came 
in, there was no Mr. Rabbit to be seen. 

Mrs. Rabbit looked round the stove, and be- 
hind the door, and under the bed, and down in 
the barrel, and then out of the window ; and there 
she saw the top of Mr. Rabbit’s long fishing- 
pole, running down the hill in the ’rection of the 
spring branch, and she knew the sight of the 
twister had cured him. 


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